Released this morning, the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee unveiled legislation to fund the federal government for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2011. In response, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, made the following statement:

Earlier this week, the West Virginia State Senate passed legislation to establish digital learning in the state’s public school system. Digital learning is any type of learning that effectively utilizes technology to support a high-quality education. It includes, but is not limited to, online classes and the use of technology in a traditional classroom to create a blended approach to teaching using smart boards, educational gaming, and internet devices. In response, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, made the following statement:

Yesterday, U.S. Representative Rubén Hinojosa (D-TX) introduced the Graduation Promise Act, new legislation that would target federal resources to the nation’s lowest-performing high schools to reduce the dropout rate and increase student achievement. Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, responds.

Released this morning, President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2012 federal budget proposed a modest but significant increase for education programs. In response, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, made the following statement:

Although teacher quality is recognized as one of the most powerful factors in student learning, schooling in the United States relies on teacher licensure systems that value academic degrees, years of experience, and paper and pencil exams over demonstrations of effectiveness. A new policy brief from the Alliance for Excellent Education calls for practical set of standards and assessments to measure the quality of teacher performance.

During his State of the Union address, President Obama underscored the importance of education to America's future success and called for a new law to replace the No Child Left Behind Act in 2011. In response, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, made the following statement.

District policies play a considerable role in determining principals’ instructional behaviors and successes in transforming high school culture, according to a new brief from the Alliance for Excellent Education. States and districts must support school leaders in organizing professional development opportunities for teachers to learn how they can support the school’s mission, particularly in schools serving the most challenged students. According to the brief, without policies that focus on a schoolwide, systematic approach to improving professional learning and collaborative practices, higher standards and curriculum reforms can fall flat. The brief, "Meeting the Challenge: The Role of School Leaders in Turning Around the Lowest-Performing High Schools," was made possible by Carnegie Corporation of New York.

The results of the 2009 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) were released this morning by the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), showing that 15-year-old students in the United States continue to rank at average or below average in international comparisons of reading, math, and science.

Reacting to today’s release of American students’ performance on the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) exam, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia made the following statement.

We share a vision for education in America. Our vision is an education that maximizes every child’s potential for learning, prepares every child with the knowledge and skills to succeed in college and careers, and launches every child into the world with the ability to pursue his or her dreams. By unleashing the power of digital learning, America has the ability to realize that vision today. Digital learning can customize and personalize education so all students learn in their own style at their own pace, which maximizes their chances for success in school and beyond. With digital learning, every student—from rural communities to inner cities—can access high quality and rigorous courses in every subject, including foreign languages, math and science.