Now, it s true that Bush invoked some pieties about decentralization. Those of us at the table know that reforms come from the bottom up. And therefore, we ve got to align authority and responsibility at the local level. It s impossible for the federal government to dictate reform. Experience and logic show, however, that what the government spends, it also controls.
More spending means more centralization, no matter what rhetoric it s wrapped in.
The institution to which you are accountable is the institution that is in control. There s even reason to be wary of Bush s underlying theory. Education excellence starts with people knowing that every child can be a smart child. The implication is that all children are equally educable, an assumption that lies at the root of nearly all educational practice today. If radically dissimilar kids are thrown together in the same learning environment, the quick ones are going to suffer so long as teachers spend their time and energy trying to prove that there is no difference among the innate intellectual abilities of children.