Today, John McCain addressed the NAACP, and given that a large portion of his speech centered on education issues, this is as good a time as any to visit the education proposals of the candidates. In preparation for this, I spoke today with Nancy Pfotenhauer, a senior policy advisor on domestic issues for John McCain’s campaign, and I’ll include a portion of that interview here. We were unable to reach a DNC representative thus far. With all the attention currently centering on the economy, energy policy and the wars, information on education policy has gotten scant attention in the media.
A lot of the proposals from both sides will involve expanding Federal government spending on education. From the Obama web site, we see that he plans on pushing for a new tax credit for college tuition.
Obama will make college affordable for all Americans by creating a new American Opportunity Tax Credit. This universal and fully refundable credit will ensure that the first $4,000 of a college education is completely free for most Americans, and will cover two-thirds the cost of tuition at the average public college or university and make community college tuition completely free for most students.
Senator McCain’s proposals also include new spending for innovative programs. Both candidates would like to see financial incentives for recruiting new teachers and encouraging them to work in some of the more challenging schools, particularly in urban areas.
There are a few differences to highlight, however. Obama’s proposals seem more geared toward conventional K-12 public schools, while McCain’s plan includes significant funding for the expansion of distance learning. (Remote, computer based education.) During our interview today, Ms. Pfotenhauer told us:
There is at least a half billion dollars more in spending that will go to expand technical advancements, getting these students online, to build new resources and expand what is available on line.
The McCain plan also puts 250 million into “Virtual Passport Scholarships” for such distance education.
Another area of difference is that fact that Senator Obama has come out in opposition to the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program. Senator McCain is supporting it and proposes to expand funding for the project. The key differentiator here seems to be over the matter of school vouchers. In short, the Democrats oppose them, feeling that they pull money and resources from already failing schools, and the Republicans favor them as an opportunity for parents to seek a better school for their children if the current one fails them. Back to our interview, this is Ms. Pfotenhaur summarizing why John McCain feels that vouchers are important.
Every child deserves the right to a high quality education, regardless of their socioeconomic background. The DC program is the one we can affect the most. All of our programs are designed to help the public education system through the reduction of bureaucratic barriers and offering choices to parents . We want all children to have access to a high quality education.
Both campaigns have an emphasis on recruiting and retaining large numbers of new teachers and getting them to work in schools where resources are scarce. Additionally, the Obama plan stresses streamlining and simplifying the application process for federal aid.
Personally, I’ve never had a serious problem with some of the proposed voucher systems, providing they don’t drain too many resources from our public schools. (Your mileage may vary.) Americans like having choices, and when making decisions about childrens’ education, it shouldn’t be any different. I’m also enthusiastic about remote education opportunities. (As an aside, my own wife completed one such degree program from home while changing careers.) Both of the candidates have some aggressive projects in mind to improve education, but with the two noted areas of difference, I will have to give my personal tip of the hat to McCain on education policy.
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