From The Seattle PI
By Barack Obama

Every four years, we hear candidates talk about the vital importance of education. But like energy independence and health care, the urgency of bringing our schools into the 21st century has been talked to death in Washington, D.C. That failure to act has put our nation in jeopardy.

Our kids and our country can’t afford four more years of neglect and indifference. In our global economy, it’s not just that a world-class education is essential for workers to compete and win, it’s that an educated work force is essential for America to compete and win — because countries that out-educate us today will outcompete us tomorrow.

This election is our chance to move beyond the old arguments of left and right and take meaningful, practical steps to build an education system worthy of our children and our future. My opponent, John McCain, has talked about the need for change and reform in Washington. But in the nearly three decades he’s spent there, he has not done one thing to truly improve the quality of public education in our country. Instead, he marched with the ideologues in his party in opposing efforts to hire more teachers, fully fund No Child Left Behind and make college more affordable. He even called for closing the Department of Education.

John McCain doesn’t understand that our success as a nation depends on our success in education — I do. That’s why last November, I laid out a plan to invest in early childhood education, fix No Child Left Behind and finally put a college degree within reach for anyone who wants one by giving a $4,000 tax credit to any middle-class student willing to serve his or her community or country.

But that alone won’t prepare students for the 21st century knowledge economy. We need a new vision for a 21st century education — one where we aren’t just supporting existing schools but spurring innovation; where we’re not just investing more money but demanding more reform; and where we expect all children not only to graduate high school but to graduate college and get a good-paying job.

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