A Primer o

1. Race to the Top
Department of Education
S

2. Watch and listen to this clip
S “It’s time to stop just talking about education reform and
start actually doing it. It’s time to make education
America’s national mission”
S President Barack Obama, November 4, 2009

3. Race to the Top
•On February 17, 2009, President Obama
signed the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA). This act was
designed to support job creation, stimulate
the economy, and invest in various areas,
including education.
•The ARRA provided for $4.35 billion for the
Race to to the Top fund, a competitive grant
program designed to encourage and reward
States that are creating the conditions for
education innovation and reform (as stated
in the Race to the Top Programs Executive
Summary)

4. Some things to
think about….
Do you think a program such
as Race to the Top promotes
success ? Does it promote
“teaching to test”?
What do you think John
Dewey would have thought of
the Race to the Top program?
Do you agree with Diane
Ravitch’s view? Read this

5. Change in Education over the
past 20 years
What are the As future educators, is it
advantages to each of our duty to follow
these methods? current teaching
patterns?

6. Tell me more
Race to the Top Executive Summary
It is crucial to read this summary in order to understand the full
realm of this reform, including an overview of the program and
the points system, eligibility requirements, and other important
factors. Read it, it will help to comprehend what the program
was/is aiming to do.
Press Release on November 12, 2009

7. What is RTTT doing?
“Race to the Top will reward states that have demonstrated
success in raising student achievement and have the
best plans to accelerate their reforms in the future.
These States will offer models for others to follow and will
spread the best reform ideas across their States, and
across the country” Race to the Top Executive Summary,
page 2

8. How does the funding work?
Criteria for Funding
S Great Teachers and Leaders (138 total points)
S State Success Factors (125 total points)
S Standards and Assessments (70 total points)
S General Selection Criteria (55 total points)
S Turning Around the Lowest-Achieving Schools (50 total
points)
S Data Systems to Support Instruction (47 total points)

9. RTTT v. NCLB?
A Smarter Path to a "Race to the Top" in Education Reform
In this article, Dan Lips explores RTTT – this article was
from January 26, 2010 soon after the reform was
enacted. He criticizes the reform and compares it to
NCLB. What do you think? Compare and contrast RTTT
to NCLB. Lips contends that states should have more
say in how federal education funds get distributed. Do
you agree? What would be the benefits and
disadvantages of this?

10. Progress
NYS Presentation / Phase 1 / Finalist
Year 1 Annual Performance Report
Phase II Information - Check out
application forms and info - it's quite
interesting!

11. Some other views…
Is RTTT “devastating”? Where is the funding
coming from?
S Are standardization, centralization,
and test-based accountability helping S What are the positive aspects
or hurting our school systems of RTTT? Can we benefit from
this program?
Does reform like NCLB and
programs
like RTTT promote cheating?
Read this and decide for yourself

12. References
Levine, M., & Levine, A. (2012). Education deformed: No child left behind and race to the top. this almost reads like our
business plans. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 82(1), 104-113. Retrieved from
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1939-0025.2011.01142.x/abstract
Lips, D. (2010). A smarter path to race to the top in education reform. WebMemo, 2779, Retrieved from
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2010/01/a-smarter-path-to-a-race-to-the-top-in-education-reform
Onosko, J. (2011). Race to the top leaves children and future citizens behind. Democracy & Education, 19(2), Retrieved
from
http://democracyeducationjournal.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1017&context=home&seiredir=1&referer=http://www.goo
gle.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=race%20to%20the%20top%20leaves%20children%20and%20future%20citizens%20behind&so
urce=web&cd=1&ved=0CC0QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdemocracyeducationjournal.org%2Fcgi%2Fviewcontent.cgi%3F
article%3D1017%26context%3Dhome&ei=Fp6jUJbBFsbEsgac6IGoCQ&usg=AFQjCNGWJX4zG_Wl4RTY_bbiSiHo7xVljA
Ravitch, D. (2010, August 1). Obama's race to the top will not improve education. Huffington Post Politics, Retrieved from
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/diane-ravitch/obamas-race-to-the-top-wi_b_666598.html
U.S. Department of Education, (2009). Race to the top executive summary. Retrieved from website:
http://www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop/executive-summary.pdf
U.S. Department of Education, (2012). Race to the top executive summary. Retrieved from website:
http://www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop-district/2012-executive-summary.pdf
Winerip, M. (2012, January 22). In race to the top, the dirty work is left to those on the bottom. The New York Times.
Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/23/education/in-obamas-race-to-the-top-work-and-expense-lie-with-
states.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0