The Obama Administration would have us believe that their Race to the Top education initiative is a huge improvement over the Bush Administration’s No Child Left Behind. Experts aren’t sure. While framed differently and providing a seemingly opposing set of incentives, some believe the new legislation is not much more than "political show and tell."

In July, when the program was unveiled, the Wall Street Journal opinion was this:

The exercise will fail if it is merely a one-off trade of cash for this or that new law.

What is Race to the Top?

We understand No Child Left Behind — at least we think we do. To me it means that my children will be taught the test, the whole test, and nothing but the test. Race to the Top aspires to incent something different. States will have the opportunity to compete for $4.35 billion in federal funds. It’s a ‘historic’ number, but will it work?

The Race to the Top rewards states that accomplish specific reforms.

Standards & Assessments (Tests!)

Work together to create and implement a system of academic standards that builds toward college and career readiness. This includes better tests that measure critical knowledge as well as higher-order thinking skills. (Maybe we’ll get some art and music programs back? PE anyone?)

Recruiting Teachers

Reforming and improving teacher preparation, evaluation, compensation, and retention. Teachers should be rewarded for effectiveness and placed in the schools and subjects where they are needed the most. (Sounds great. Under No Child Left Behind, the evaluation and compensation pieces are largely based on testing. How’s this any different?)

Data Integration and Analysis

The White House Fact Sheet on Race to the Top states that better decisions will be made and instruction improved “by fully implementing a statewide longitudinal data system, assessing and using data to drive instruction, and making data more accessible to key stakeholders.” (In other words, join the digital age?)

Innovation and Effectiveness

States that can demonstrate prioritization and transformation of low-performing schools are rewarded.

Sustaining Reform (ie Charter Schools?)

Race to the Top seeks encourages collaborations between business leaders, educators, and other stakeholders to improve education over the long term. According to the official White House document, this translates to “support for high-performing public charter schools, reinvigorating math and science education, and promoting other conditions favorable to innovation and reform.”

My idea to fix education is simple:

Beat them with a stick, take away their calculators, and stock the library with good books.

(And speaking for the South — invest in some snow plows so we can quit with the five-snow-days-in-a-row-when-there’s-an-inch-of-snow nonsense.)