Goals 2000

In 1989, a coalition of state governors from all 50 states and President George H. W. Bush proposed an educational reform program they named Goals 2000 as a solution to the failing state of U.S. public schools and the nation-at-risk image plaguing the country. The program set national educational goals for U.S. students that were to be achieved by the year 2000. As a result, Goals 2000, the Educate America Act (P.L. 103–227), was developed and later signed into law by President Bill Clinton, Bush's successor, on March 31, 1994. It provided funding to schools to help all students reach high levels of achievement and their full potential through systemic reform. This emphasis on achievement result was embodied in changes in curriculum, instruction, professional development, accountability, and assessment. Curriculum was to be aligned with performance standards. The act established a framework to create academic standards, assess student learning, and support students who needed help to meet the standards.

Goals 2000 consisted of eight national goals. The goals included that by the year 2000 all children in the United States would start school ready [Page 413]to learn and that the high school graduation rate would increase to at least 90%. It also codified goals concerning academic and occupational skills achievement, U.S. global leadership in math and the sciences, adult literacy, drug-and violence-free schools, professional development for teachers, and family involvement in the academic, social, and emotional development of their children. The goals were intended to make Americans competitive in a global economy and able to develop into responsible citizens. The goals were to do this by holding all students to high standards. Focused content standards were to guide local curriculum development. The underlying philosophy was that if students were not challenged to fulfill their potential, they never would.

Through Goals 2000, the government provided the goals; however, states and communities were given the power to determine how they would reach them and to create aggressive plans that could potentially be funded in whole or in part by the federal government. Colleagues were encouraged to work together toward the goals. States submitted applications for funding. Applications outlined how the states planned to improve their schools and curriculum. Congress appropriated $105 million for Goals 2000 in 1994.

Initially, the goals seemed unobjectionable. However, serious pitfalls soon began to reveal themselves. For example, although presented as a voluntary program in which states did not have to participate, nonparticipation meant states passed up substantial federal funding. Hidden mandates required that states submit proposals for funding and plans for improvement, be penalized if they failed to comply with their proposed plans, and form partnerships with schools, universities, and businesses. Conservatives and homeschoolers criticized Goals 2000 for putting public schools in the position of monitoring various services for children.

In 1999, the National Education Goals Panel reported that although the nation had not yet completely satisfied any of the eight goals set by Goals 2000, some progress had been made. For example, advancement was made in preparing preschoolers for school entry. It was evident that more children were entering school physically healthier than previously, and they were better prepared for kindergarten as a result of effective literacy experiences in preschool and in the children's homes. Furthermore, progress was evident in student achievements through advanced proficiencies in elementary and middle school math and reading.

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