Bill Richardson on education. There’s a lot of emotion here. I’m still not entirely sure who I’ll cast my vote for in the primary (as if the CT one actually matters), but I’m definitely going to read up more on Richardson. The rest of this speech is here (emphasis from Schools Matter):

My Democratic opponents have been cautious in confronting George Bush on this issue. Just as they trusted George Bush on the Iraq war and the Patriot Act, they trusted him on No Child Left Behind. The result has been a travesty for our children.

Some say fix it, others say tweak it. Senator Hillary Clinton says reform it.

I also have two words for No Child Left Behind: Scrap It…

The key to a good education is not narrow tests or Washington wisdom. The key is a good teacher in every classroom.

We need to attract and retain the best and brightest for our nation’s schools. We need to start treating teachers with the professional respect that they have earned.

When I am President, teachers will have a national average starting salary of $40,000. We will improve and expand teacher training … and strengthen standards and accountability. We will increase the number of nationally-certified teachers.

I will provide bonuses and create a loan forgiveness program for teachers who choose to work in under-performing and high-poverty areas.

I also commit to you that I will hire 100,000 new math and science teachers. It’s a simple equation — talented math and science teachers lead to inspired and successful math and science students. High-quality math and science education is not optional. It is essential to holding our position as the world’s leader of progress and hope. And I will set a national goal of making America number one in the world in math and science within fifteen years…

We should move from a pass/fail model to a more comprehensive system of measurement. Narrow tests will only create narrow people…