President Obama on Early Childhood Education

                 
The President:Hello, everybody! (applause) Well, it is greatto be in Georgia! (applause) Great to be in Decatur! (applause) I can't imagine a more romanticway to spend Valentine's Day -- (laughter) -- than with all of you,with all the press here. Actually, Michelle says hello. (applause) She made me promise to get backin time for our date tonight. (laughter) That's important. That's important. I've already got agift, got the flowers. (applause) I was telling folks the flowersare a little easier, though, because I've gotthis Rose Garden. (laughter) Lot of people keepingflowers around. I want to acknowledge afew people who are here -- first of all, CongressmanHank Johnson is here. Where's Hank? (applause) Your Mayor, JimBaskett, is here. (applause) Another Mayor you may know-- Kasim Reed snuck in here. (applause) I want to acknowledgethe Decatur School Board, who I had a chance to meet andhas helped to do so much great work around here. (applause) Folks right here. And of course, I want tothank Mary for the wonderful introduction and for teachingme how to count earlier today. (laughter) I've got to tell you itwas wonderful to be there. I want to thank all theteachers and the parents and the administrators ofDecatur City Schools, because behind every child whois doing great there is a great teacher, and I'm proud of everysingle one of you for the work that you do here today. (applause) Now, on Tuesday, I deliveredmy State of the Union address. And I laid out a plan forreigniting what I believe is the true engine of America'seconomic growth, and that is a thriving,growing, rising middle class. And that also means laddersfor people to get into the middle class. And the plan I put forward sayswe need to make smart choices as a country -- both to grow oureconomy, shrink our deficits in a balanced way by cutting whatwe don't need but then investing in the things that we do need tomake sure that everybody has a chance to get ahead in life. What we need is to make Americaa magnet for new jobs by investing inmanufacturing, and energy, and better roads andbridges and schools. We've got to make sure hard workis rewarded with a wage that you can live on andraise a family on. We need to make sure that we'vegot shared responsibility for giving every American the chanceto earn the skills and education that they need for a reallycompetitive, global job market. As I said on Tuesday night, thateducation has to start at the earliest possible age. And that's what you haverealized here in Decatur. (applause) Study after study shows that theearlier a child begins learning, the better he or shedoes down the road. But here's the thing: We are notdoing enough to give all of our kids that chance. The kids we saw today that I hada chance to spend time with in Mary's classroom, they'resome of the lucky ones -- because fewer than 3 in 10four-year-olds are enrolled in a high-quality preschool program. Most middle-class parents can'tafford a few hundred bucks a week for private preschool. And for the poor childrenwho need it the most, the lack of access to a greatpreschool education can have an impact on their entire lives. And we all pay a price for that. And as I said, thisis not speculation. Study after study shows theachievement gap starts off very young. Kids who, when they go intokindergarten, their first day, if they already have a lotfewer vocabulary words, they don't know their numbersand their shapes and have the capacity for focus; you know,they're going to be behind that first day. And it's very hard forthem to catch up over time. And then, at a certain point-- I bet a lot of teachers have seen this -- kids aren't stupid. They know they're behindat a certain point, and then theystart pulling back, and they act like they'redisinterested in school because they're frustrated that they'renot doing as well as they should, and thenyou may lose them. And that's why,on Tuesday night, I proposed working withstates like Georgia to make high-quality preschool availableto every child in America. Every child. (applause) Every dollar we invest inhigh-quality early education can save more than sevendollars later on -- boosting graduation rates,reducing teen pregnancy, reducing violent crime. In states like Georgia that havemade it a priority to educate our youngest children,states like Oklahoma, students don't just show up inkindergarten and first grade more prepared to learn, they'realso more likely to grow up reading and doingmath at grade level, graduating from highschool, holding a job, even forming morestable families. Hope is found in what works. This works. We know it works. If you are looking for a goodbang for your educational buck, this is it right here. (applause) That's why, even intimes of tight budgets, states like Georgia and Oklahomahave worked to make a preschool slot available for nearly everyparent who is looking for one for their child. And they're being staffedwith folks like Mary -- qualified, highlyeducated teachers. This is not babysitting. This is teaching. (applause) So at the age that our childrenare just sponges soaking stuff in, their minds aregrowing fastest, what we saw in the classroomhere today was kids are taught numbers, they're taughtshapes, but also how to answer questions, discover patterns,play well with others. And the teachers whowere in the classroom, they've got a coach who's comingin and working with them on best practices and paying attentionto how they can constantly improve what they're doing. And that whole playing wellwith others, by the way, is a trait we coulduse more in Washington. (applause) So maybe we need tobring the teachers up -- (applause) -- every once in a whilehave some quiet time. (laughter) Time out. (laughter) So at the College Heights EarlyChildhood Learning Center that I visited earlier today, nearly200 little kids are spending full days learning in classroomswith highly qualified teachers. (applause) And so I was working with themto build towers and replicate sculptures and sing songs. And, look, I've got to admit, Iwas not always the fastest guy on some of this stuff. The kids were beatingme to the punch. But through this interactivelearning, they're learning math, writing, how to tell stories. And one of the things thatyou've done here in Decatur that's wonderful also is, isthat you've combined kids from different income levels; you'vegot disabled kids all in the same classroom, so we'reall learning together. (applause) And what that means is, is thatall the kids are being leveled up, and you're not seeing someof that same stratification that you see that eventually leads tothese massive achievement gaps. So before you know it, thesekids are going to be moving on to bigger and betterthings in kindergarten, and they're going to bebetter prepared to succeed. And what's more, I don't thinkyou'll find a working parent in America who wouldn't appreciatethe peace of mind that their child is in a safe, high-qualitylearning environment every single day. (applause) Michelle and I remember howtough it can be to find good childcare. I remember how expensiveit can be, too. The size of yourpaycheck, though, shouldn't determineyour child's future. (applause) So let's fix this. (applause) Let's make sure none of ourkids start out the race of life already a step behind. Let's make it a nationalpriority to give every child access to a high-qualityearly education. Let's give our kids that chance. Now, I do have to warn theparents who are here who still have young kids -- they growup to be, like, 5'10" -- (laughter) -- and even if they'restill nice to you, they basically don't have alot of time for you during the weekends. (laughter) They have sleepoversand -- dates. (laughter) So all that early investment -- (laughter) -- just leads them to go away. (laughter) Now, what I also said on Tuesdaynight is that our commitment to our kids' education has tocontinue throughout their academic lives. So from the time ourkids start grade school, we need to equip them with theskills they need to compete in a high-tech economy. That's why we're working torecruit and train 100,000 new teachers in the fieldsof the future -- in science and technology, andengineering and math where we are most likely to fall behind. We've got to redesign our highschools so that a diploma puts our kids on a pathto a good job. (applause) We want to reward schools thatdevelop new partnerships with colleges and employers, andcreate classes that focus on science and technology,and engineering and math -- all the things that can help ourkids fill those jobs that are there right now butalso in the future. And obviously, once our kidsgraduate from high school, we've got to make sure thatskyrocketing costs don't price middle-class families outof a higher education -- (applause) -- or saddle them withunsustainable debt. I mean, some of the youngerteachers who are here, they've chosen a careerpath that is terrific, but let's face it, you don'tgo into teaching to get rich. (laughter) And it is very important that wemake sure that they can afford to get a great education andcan choose to be a teacher, can choose to be in ateaching profession. (applause) So we've worked to make collegemore affordable for millions of students and families alreadythrough tax credits and grants and loans that gofarther than before. But taxpayers can't keepsubsidizing ever-escalating price tags for higher education. At some point yourun out of money. So colleges haveto do their part. And colleges that don't doenough to keep costs in check should get less federal supportso that we're incentivizing colleges to think about howto keep their costs down. And just yesterday, we releasedwhat we're calling a new "College Scorecard" that givesparents and students all the information they need tocompare schools by value and affordability so that theycan make the best choice. And any interestedparent, by the way, who's out there can checkit out at WhiteHouse.gov. (applause) Now, in the end, that'swhat this is all about -- giving our kids the bestpossible shot at life; equipping them with the skills,education that a 21st century economy demands; giving themevery chance to go as far as their hard work and God-givenpotential will take them. That's not just going tomake sure that they do well; that will strengthen our economyand our country for all of us. Because if theirgeneration prospers, if they've got the skillsthey need to get a good job, that means businesseswant to locate here. And it also means, by theway, they're well-equipped as citizens with the criticalthinking skills that they need in order to helpguide our democracy. We'll all prosper that way. That's what we're fighting for. They're the ones who are goingto write that next great chapter in the American story, and we'vegot to make sure that we're providing that investment. I am so proud of every singleteacher who is here who has dedicated their lives to makingsure those kids get a good start in life. I want to make surethat I'm helping, and I want to make sure that thecountry is behind you every step of the way. Thank you, everybody. God bless you. God bless America. (applause)