President Obama enlists governors to raise the education bar. Proposes New Reading and Math Standards

President Barack Obama wants academic standards for America’s high school students raised, and he’s applauding a program from the nation’s governors that works toward those goals.

In a statement issued Sunday, the White House said the initiative will develop and implement new reading and math standards that prepare high school students for college and careers. The governors will call on Obama on Monday, as they wrap up their National Governor’s Association meeting, to discuss the blueprint to prepare students to stay competitive with their counterparts around the world.

"Because too many students are not learning the basic skills needed to succeed in college or work while they are in high school," the White House said in the statement, "the nation sacrifices more than $3.7 billion a year in lost productivity and remedial education costs."

Full Story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/22/AR2010022200361.html

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Obama to Propose New Reading and Math Standards

By SAM DILLON

In a proposed change to the No Child Left Behind law, the Obama administration would require states to adopt new academic standards to qualify for federal money from a $14 billion program that concentrates on impoverished students, the White House said Sunday.

The proposal, part of the administration’s recommendations for a Congressional overhaul of the law, would require states to adopt “college- and career-ready standards” in reading and mathematics.

Full Story: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/22/education/22educ.html?hpw