| Education |
Positions and Views |
| Education, a General Statement |
Biden: Investing in education is one of Sen. Biden's top priorities. To better prepare today's students to meet the technology challenges of tomorrow, he has undertaken bold initiatives in the Senate to close the "digital divide" and ensure that all students have access to the on-ramp of the information super highway. Senator Biden's successful "Kids 2000" legislation, signed into law by the President in October of 2000, establishes a public/private partnership to help provide computer centers, teachers, Internet access and technical training to young people across the nation, particularly to low-income and at-risk youth.
“My mother has an expression, children tend to become that which you expect of them. I want a country where we expect much from America’s children. Every child must graduate from high school. Every child should go on to higher education. Today, just two-thirds of students entering high school graduate, and about two-thirds of those go on to college. We are losing too many children in this country, wasting too much talent, leaving so much potential untapped. We know what we need to do: First, stop focusing just on test scores. Second, start education earlier. Third, pay educators more. Fourth, reduce class size. Fifth, make higher education affordable.”
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |
| Department of Education |
Biden: No Response |
| Public Schools |
Biden: He has worked to get more federal resources to help states and local communities repair existing schools and build new ones.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues Date: 04/22/2008 |
| Improving Education |
Biden: Joe Biden would build a 21st century education system by: 1. Move Toward A Sixteen Year System 2.Focus on Retaining And Training Teachers 3.Reduce Class Size
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |
| Pre-School |
Biden: He would start education earlier so that every parent who wants to can send their child to two years of preschool. The earlier a child begins to learn, the better prepared she will be for life. Children who go to preschool with books, structure and activities have a better shot of reading at grade-level in middle school, graduating from high school, and going to college. As President, Joe Biden will add two years of pre-school to our public education system by: -Providing grants to states to expand high quality state-funded preschool programs: Building on the current groundswell of support for preschool across the states, Joe Biden would provide $5 billion in grants to states to expand high quality public preschool programs. -Starting education and nutrition at birth: Joe Biden believes that education begins at birth. He would expand programs that provide home visitation to new parents to help them understand their role as their child’s most influential teacher. These programs provide parents with guidance and support on how parents can best support their child’s development, from advice about health to school readiness.
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |
| Head Start |
Biden: Education starts at birth. If there is one thing we know, a child who goes to preschool with books, structure, and activities starts school better prepared. She has a better shot of making it to middle-school with grade-level reading and math skills, graduating high school, and going to college. Senator Biden wants to make two years of high quality pre-school available to all parents and expand early childhood development programs. He supports doubling the number of students in Head Start and quadrupling the number in Early Head Start.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues Date: 04/22/2008 |
| High Schools |
Biden: No Response |
| Higher Education |
Biden: The importance of a college degree has never been greater, yet over the next decade 2 million students will not attend college because of costs. Not wanting college to become a luxury good – unmanageable for middle-class families – in 2007, Senator Biden introduced his College ACCESS legislation. It would provide a $3,000 refundable tax credit – equivalent to a $12,000 deduction – that would:
Fully cover the average cost of tuition and fees at a two-year college.
Cover more than half the cost of tuition and fees at a public four-year college.
It achieves this by consolidating two existing incentives – the Hope Scholarship Credit and the tuition and fees deduction – and makes the credit available to families regardless of tax liability. It would make it easier for families to understand the maze of existing incentives, and make 4 million more families eligible by increasing current income limits.
Senator Biden’s ACCESS plan would also increase Pell Grants to $6,300 – guaranteeing that, together with the ACCESS credit, low-income students could receive up to $9,300 toward tuition each year.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues Date: 04/22/2008 |
| Adult Education |
Biden: No Response |
| Dropouts |
Biden: No Response |
| Community Colleges |
Biden: No Response |
| Classroom Size |
Biden: Joe Biden would hire 100,000 new teachers to reduce the average class size to 18 students, particularly in the early grades. Students in small class sizes in kindergarten - 3rd grade are as much as half a year ahead of students from larger classes in reading, math and science by the time they get to 5th grade. Smaller classes will provide teachers with the resources they need to create the opportunities for learning that our students deserve. Joe Biden would provide $2 billion a year in grants to states and districts to help them hire more teachers and provide incentives to attract new teachers.
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |
| Extended Learning Time |
Biden: In addition to extending the number of years of public education available to all students, Joe Biden supports states and districts that expand educational time either by extending school days or school schedules. Such programs encourage innovation in curriculum and provide students with more time for enrichment activities like art, music, drama and computer science. He would provide states and local districts with grants to assist in developing expanded educational time programs.
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |
| After-School Programs |
Biden: Senator Biden’s on-gong membership in the After School Caucus speaks to the vital importance of these programs to children and working families. He has continually supported programs that provide safe, supervised after-school activities.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues/ Date: 04/22/2008 |
| Parental Involvement |
Biden: No Response |
| Computers in Schools |
Biden: Recognizing the role technology plays in the 21st Century, Senator Biden pushed legislation to close the digital divide. He was a major force behind KIDS 2000, establishing a public/private partnership to provide computer centers, teachers, and Internet access to young people.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues/ Date: 04/22/2008 |
| Federal Mandates |
Biden: No Response |
| Federal Funding of Private Schools |
Biden: No Response |
| Standardized Testing |
Biden: No Response |
| No Child Left Behind Act, a General Statement |
Biden: A long-time proponent of education reform, Senator Biden wants to see the No Child Left Behind law improved by giving schools greater flexibility in evaluating student performance and by fully funding education. President Bush has under funded the program by $85 billion.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues Date: 04/22/2008 |
| No Child Left Behind Act Federal Funding Level |
Biden: A long-time proponent of education reform, Senator Biden wants to see the No Child Left Behind law improved by giving schools greater flexibility in evaluating student performance and by fully funding education. President Bush has under funded the program by $85 billion.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues Date: 04/22/2008 |
| Teacher Pay |
Biden: The average starting salary of engineers is $53,000, while the average starting salary of a public school teacher is $32,000. To attract the best and brightest to teach our children, we have to pay them better. Joe Biden would: -Provide bonuses to teachers who teach in high-need schools. Teacher attrition is twice as high at high-poverty schools than low-poverty schools. Poor and minority students are more likely to inexperienced teachers. As President, Joe Biden would reward teachers who take on these challenging, yet critical jobs. -Provide new teachers with a bonus in exchange for a commitment to teach in the same school for five years. About half of all new teachers leave the profession within five years. The average starting salary of teachers is $32,000 a year. Joe Biden would increase the salaries of new teachers to provide the incentive to stay in the field – and in their schools -- by providing them with bonuses in exchange for a five- year commitment. Funding would be targeted to high-need schools to alleviate the teacher attrition problem where it is most severe. -Provide incentives to reward professional development like National Board Certification. Joe Biden believes that teachers who have completed this rigorous, high quality, and effective certification process should be compensated in a manner fitting their new credential. He would supplement salaries of teachers who attained National Board Certification. -Assist teachers with student loan repayment. Joe Biden would help teachers defray the costs of education in exchange for a four-year commitment to teaching – particularly in a high need school.
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |
| Teacher Merit Based Pay |
Biden: No Response |
| Teacher Tenure |
Biden: No Response |
| Teacher Unions |
Biden: No Response |
| Teacher Standards |
Biden: With a wife who has taught for almost 30 years and a part-time professor himself, Senator Biden knows: teachers are the single most important factor in a child’s education. Attracting and retaining great teachers has become a national problem. We lose 250,000 teachers every year, half are leaving within five years of entering the profession, and we have difficulty keeping teachers in high-poverty schools. The Senator would work to ensure that all beginning teachers participate in a high quality mentoring or induction program, and would also provide scholarships to those who commit to teaching in high-needs schools. He also believes reducing class size and paying teachers more – as they do in many countries – are steps America should be taking.
Senator Biden co-sponsored legislation for the National Writing Project, a professional development program for teachers of all ages – from kindergarten through college. The program trains teachers over the summer on writing instruction.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues Date: 04/22/2008 |
| Student Standards |
Biden: No Response |
| National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Reading and Math Exams |
Biden: No Response |
| Education Global Superiority |
Biden: No Response |
| Junk Food Vending Machines in Public Schools |
Biden: No Response |
| Education Gap with Other Countries |
Biden: No Response |
| School Choice |
Biden: No Response |
| Private School Vouchers |
Biden: No Response |
| Charter Schools |
Biden: No Response |
| Home Schooling |
Biden: No Response |
| Special Education |
Biden: Senator Biden co-sponsored the original Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which has enabled millions of children with disabilities to have equal educational opportunities.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues/ Date: 04/22/2008 |
| Magnet Schools |
Biden: No Response |
| Rural Schools |
Biden: No Response |
| Summer School |
Biden: No Response |
| Teaching Evolution and Intelligent Design |
Biden: No Response |
| Teaching of Sex Education and Birth Control Options |
Biden: No Response |
| Teach about Gay and Lesbian Orientation |
Biden: No Response |
| Teacher Selection of Textbooks |
Biden: No Response |
| Religion in Public Schools |
Biden: No Response |
| "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance |
Biden: No Response |
| Student Loans, Scholarships and Pell Grants |
Biden: In 1975, the maximum Pell Grant covered 84 percent of the cost of tuition, fees, room, and board at a four-year public college. The maximum Pell Grant this year covered 33 percent of the average cost of tuition, fees, room, and board at a public four-year college. Joe Biden would increase the maximum Pell Grant to $5,100 for 2007-08, followed by increases of $300 per year for the next five years, for a maximum Pell Grant in 2011-12 of $6,300.
Currently, most students find out whether or not they will receive a Pell Grant during their senior year of high school. Starting the financial aid process earlier would allow families and students to plan ahead for college and develop an expectation that the future includes higher education. Joe Biden would fund an Early Pell Grant Commitment Demonstration Program in four states, each of which would commit Pell Grants to two cohorts of up to 10,000 8th grade students, one in school year 2007-2008, and one in school year 2008-2009. Participation would be contingent on students’ 8th grade eligibility for free or reduced-price meals under the National School Lunch Program. Participants would qualify for the Automatic Zero Expected Family Contribution on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), guaranteeing them a maximum Pell Grant ($4,310 for 2007-08). The Early Pell Grant Demonstration Project would provide funding for states, in conjunction with the participating local education agencies, to conduct targeted information campaigns beginning in the 8th grade and continuing through students’ senior year. These campaigns would inform students and their families of the program and provide information about the cost of a college education, state and federal financial assistance, and the average amount of aid awards.
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |
| Education Tax Credits |
Biden: Joe Biden would provide a $3,000 refundable tax credit — equivalent to a $12,000 deduction -- that would cover the average cost of tuition and fees at a two-year college and cover half the average tuition cost at four-year public universities. He would consolidate two existing tax incentives – the Hope Scholarship Credit and the tuition and fees deduction – and replace them with a single refundable $3,000 tax credit. Currently, the tuition and fees deduction has a maximum value of $1,120 – about 20 percent of the average cost of tuition and fees at a public four-year college. The Hope Scholarship Credit is more valuable, with a maximum value of $1,650 – about 28 percent of the average cost of tuition and fees at a public four-year college. Simplifying the existing higher education tax incentives would make it easier for families to understand and navigate the existing maze of incentives. Currently, families must choose between the Hope Scholarship Credit, Lifetime Learning Credit, and the tuition and fees deduction. Unfortunately, many families are not aware of the different eligibility criteria, much less the varying values of each based on a family’s economic status. In fact, the Government Accountability Office found that the complexity of postsecondary tax provisions was one of the principle reasons why 27 percent of eligible tax filers claimed neither the tuition deduction nor an education tax credit. Joe Biden would also expand eligibility for refund to families making up to $166,000 a year. Recognizing that the cost of college rises each year, both the income limits and phase-out range for the credit would be adjusted annually for inflation. Furthermore, families could claim a credit for more than one eligible dependent in a school year. In pursuing their education, individuals will be eligible for credits totaling up to $12,000 toward an undergraduate degree, associate’s degree, certificate, or continuing education as well as credits totaling up t [Response was truncated to maximum response length of 2000 characters.]
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |
| Local Control Over Education |
Biden: No Response |
| Boy-Girl Achievement Gap |
Biden: No Response |
| Black-White Achievement Gap |
Biden: No Response |
| Title IX 'Equal Opportunities for Girls' |
Biden: Title IX has had an enormous influence on all aspects of education, but particularly in the realm of women’s and girls’ sports,” continued Biden. “Since enactment, the number of female college athletes has increased nearly five fold from fewer than 32,000 prior to enactment to over 150,000 today. At the high school level almost 3 million girls are playing competitive sports today compared to fewer than 300,000 prior to passage. But this isn’t just about the numbers. Girls who participate in sports are less likely to take drugs, drink alcohol, smoke or become pregnant than their non-participating peers. They are also more likely to graduate. Through their participation in sports, women and girls are provided opportunities for leadership, teamwork and competition, gain a more positive body image, and are accorded contact with adult role models in their communities. And yet, even with gains and achievements, more needs to be done. We’ve come a long way, but we should not turn the clock back now.
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 12/10/2007 |
| Bilingual Education |
Biden: No Response |
| Math and Science |
Biden: No Response |
| Art and Music |
Biden: No Response |
| School Safety |
Biden: Joe Biden fought to make our schools safer by providing funding for school resources officers to work in public schools to keep gangs, drugs, and alcohol out of schools.
Since 2000, some 100 people have died in campus-related fires – and many of the tragedies could have been prevented with proper safety measures. So Joe Biden annually introduces a resolution declaring September Campus Fire Safety Month. It encourages college administrators and local elected officials to implement educational programs, evaluate living conditions on and around campuses, and increase the use of fire detection systems.
Senator Biden has a long history of sponsoring bills to combat drug use. His legislation has enabled schools to provide drug education and prevention programs, like DARE; and he was instrumental in classifying steroids a drug and funding programs to deter its use by students.
As the father of the Violence Against Women Act, he helped fund grants for colleges to combat sexual assaults, rape, and stalking on campuses.
Source: biden.senate.gov/issues/ Date: 04/22/2008 |
| Drugs in Schools |
Biden: Joe Biden has been a leader in the fight to combat drug use for decades. He helped provide funding for DARE and other drug education programs, and has worked hard to deter the use of steroids in schools.
Source: www.joebiden.com Date: 11/30/2007 |