WASHINGTON, DC – Today the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee passed legislation to reauthorize the Education Sciences Reform Act (ERSA). In response, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, made the following statement:
“The Alliance applauds the bipartisan, bicameral effort to reauthorize the Education Sciences Reform Act. In order to increase the number of students who graduate from high school college- and career-ready, we need research on what works and we need to apply that research in our schools and classrooms. The Strengthening Education Through Research Act, passed today by the Senate HELP Committee, will provide educators and policymakers alike with tools to strengthen the education system.
“I am particularly pleased that the legislation includes a focus on deeper learning. The nation’s education system must enable students to do more than take simple multiple choice tests – it must support the acquisition of core content knowledge and key competencies and skills such as the ability to think critically, solve complex/non-routine problems, evaluate arguments on the basis of evidence, and communicate effectively. In 2012, the National Research Council issued a report recommending that federal agencies support research to strengthen teaching and assessment for deeper learning. I applaud the Senate HELP Committee for carrying out this recommendation.”
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The Alliance for Excellent Education is a Washington, DC–based national policy and advocacy organization dedicated to ensuring all students, particularly those traditionally underserved, graduate from high school ready for success in college, work, and citizenship. www.all4ed.org.
