President Bush, declaring that "our schools are in trouble," challenged parents and students Tuesday to take more responsibility for improving the quality of education in America.
"If our schools fail us, we can't blame Washington or Augusta," the state capital of Maine, Bush said. "We must blame ourselves for betraying our children."Ending his summer vacation, Bush stopped in Lewiston en route back to Washington to press his crusade to bring new vigor to America's classrooms. The focus on education is a major part of Bush's effort to deflect Democratic criticism that he lacks a domestic agenda.
Addressing an audience of students, parents and educators at Lewiston High School, Bush said that "every day brings new evidence of crisis" in classrooms. He noted that scores on verbal Scholastic Aptitude Tests have fallen to their lowest level.
"These numbers tell us our schools are in trouble," Bush said. "But before we point fingers, how many of us demand more of our children, ourselves, our
schools? Survey after survey suggests too many parents and students remain unconcerned, unconvinced that the state of their own schools should worry them."
He said, "Some of us don't want to ask tough questions and risk angering teachers and administrators. We seem to believe that while everything else in the world changes, our schools shouldn't - that what was good enough for us should be good enough for our kids.
"The truth is, all our children are at risk," he said.
He said parents expect too much of teachers, asking them to act as social workers, psychologists and family counselors. "And at the same time, we ask too little of our students. We shy away from demanding excellence and accountability."
The president told parents, "Don't be a stranger in your child's school. Visit the classroom. Talk to the principal. Make it your business to find out whether your child's school is drug free."