Remarks at Highland Park Elementary School in Landover, Maryland: week ending Friday, July 11, 2003

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, July 14, 2003

And I think what needs to happen is--and I hope Congress agrees--that the simple evaluations at the beginning of the year and the end of the year will tell us whether or not progress is being made in developing a curriculum necessary to teach children how to read. And if they are, we ought to be praising the programs, and if they're not, something else ought to happen. We cannot miss the opportunity much longer in America. Otherwise, children will be left behind.

And so Boehner is here because his committee and the Congress is considering legislation that would put a new emphasis on language skills and literacy skills in Head Start programs. In other words, we're going to codify into law that which we have started through the teacher training program.

The legislation will require Head Start providers to teach language, reading, and writing skills, as well as early math skills. In other words, it now becomes a part--when they pass the law that says the Head Start mission is further defined as an educational mission. And those programs that are used must be proven by scientific research. The legislation would hold Head Starts accountable for getting the job done.

Now look, as I mentioned before, the No Child Left Behind Act says every child can learn. We're going to have high standards. We're going to trust the local people to develop the curriculum, but in return for Federal money, we want you to measure to tell us whether or not children are learning to read and write. And that's a heavy lift for some communities, because there hasn't been a proper focus on the little children.

And therefore, we're asking people to develop an accountability system without everybody being at the same starting position. And that's why it's so important for preschool programs to be focused on literacy, so that when the accountability systems kick in in Maryland or Texas or anybody else, we can truthfully say that every child has been given the tools necessary to be at the starting line at the same time, so that we have true accountability, true measurement. And that's why the Head Start program is important.

Now, there's Governors around the State, the country that have said, "Look, give us the flexibility to be able to dovetail the Head Start program into our preschool programs so that all students--so we have a better control over whether or not the students are given the skills necessary so that when you hold us to account, we can achieve that which we want to achieve, which is excellence in the classroom."

I appreciate the desire for flexibility. I support the Governors' desire for flexibility so long as, one, Federal monies going to the States are used only for Head Start. In other words, what we really don't want to do is say we're going to focus on Head Start; the Head Start money goes for, you know, a prison complex. I know that won't happen with Governor Ehrlich, but there needs to be a guarantee that the Federal money spent on Head Start only go to Head Start.

Secondly, States and local governments must put money into the program, which would lock in the Head Start money for Head Start. So, in other words, the flexibility given to the State would not allow the States budget flexibility. It's management flexibility to be able to take the Head Start program, dovetail into the preschool program, then the kindergarten program, and then into the elementary school program.