A Primer on Race to the Top

2. What is Race to the Top?
0 From the Department of Education: What is RTTT?
Everything you ever wanted to know (sort of)
0 Watch this
0 Has Obama’s vision for education and RTTT been
followed through, or has policy differed from the
proposed vision?

3. Think about this:
0 Watch Secretary Arne Duncan on “Our World with
Black Enterprise” on RTTT… are you convinced?
0 Does RTTT promote success in depth and breadth of
knowledge and teaching, or does it promote “teaching
to the test”? Can these two things be the same thing?
0 In your experience, has RTTT improved the teaching
and learning happening in the schools you’re
connected with? If so, how? If not, why do you think?

4. The Common Core
0 Developed federally to tie student achievement to a
single set of standards- common standards and
common measurement across state lines.
0 Adopted on a case-by-case basis by states; not
federally mandated for consideration in RTTT.
0 States may choose the pace at which they implement
the standards (New York is moving faster than other
states, with the goal of full implementation P-12 in the
2013-2014 academic year).

5. Read This:
Race to the Bottom?
Check out Jay Greene’s article (especially paragraphs
three and four). Are we in a race to the bottom? Can
Common Core standards help us?
As New York implements its first Common Core-aligned
tests, are we being fair to our students? Read this and
this and see what you think.

6. As some see it: The Pros:
0 Encourages states to raise standards and educate all
students.
0 Provides funds to states and districts doing innovative
work in education reform and teaching.
0 Gives points for the creation of data-tracking systems
to support instruction.
0 Federal funds are directed by the federal government;
states have limited say in how the funds can be
directed.

7. As some see it: The Cons:
0 States and districts are winning awards even when they
have not shown improvement; states and districts that are
heralded as paving the way are not receiving the awards
(Hess, 2010).
0 Many education researchers and experts believe that Race
to the Top is not what is needed in our schools because::
0 Not based on research or best practices
0 Encourages “teaching to the test” rather than the development
of higher-order critical thinking skills
0 Ties teacher evaluations to student test scores rather than
student improvement (i.e. growth over previous years)

8. Scandal!
Have you heard about all of the cheating going on? It’s
not as far removed as you may think.
In addition to the Texas superintendent who has been in
jail for over a year now, and the 35 administrators in
Atlanta who have just been indicted, read this!

9. How do You Want to be
Evaluated?
0 Florida Teachers Sue Over Evaluation System
0 As a current or future teacher, what are the things that
you would want to count in your evaluation?
0 As a parent (or at least, put yourself in the shoes of a
parent) of a child, how would you want to evaluate
your child’s teachers?

10. G&T/SPED/ELL
0 What’s happening to these students under RTTT?
0 RTTT fails to properly account for gifted children by
limiting access to G&T programs and reducing the number
of gifted-only programs (C. Finn, personal
communication, April 4, 2013)
0Overlooked!
0 Encourages schools to discount students with special
needs by moving them to other schools or restricting their
access to tests

11. Think About This:
0 Is Race to the Top furthering our “adult-centered”
education system, or working to move it towards a
more “child-centered” system?
0 What needs to happen for policy to be based on
research? Why would the Secretary of Education not
heed the concerns of experts?
0 Watch this (“Voices from the States” after one year of
Race to the Top)

12. Questions for
Recommendations
0 What should we be focusing on in our efforts to
improve educational outcomes?
0 In what ways does Race to the Top further innovation
and in what ways does it stifle creativity?
0 Is the charter school phenomenon a result of Race to
the Top? If you think so, why? Is this a good thing or a
bad thing?

13. References
0 Baker, A. (2013, April 15). Long Island inquiry includes claim of altered high school exam score. The New York Times.
Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/16/education/new-glen-cove-allegation-on-handling-of-state-
test.html?ref=education
0 Baker, A. (2013, April 19). More in New York City qualify as gifted after error is fixed. The New York Times. Retrieved
from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/20/education/score-corrections-qualify-nearly-2700-more-pupils-for-gifted-
programs.html?ref=education&_r=0
0 Baker, A., and Hernandez, J. C. (2013, April 19). A tough new test spurs protest and tears. The New York Times.
Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/19/education/common-core-testing-spurs-outrage-and-protest-
among-parents.html?ref=education
0 Barton, P. E. (2009, August 13). Comments on proposed regulations for education stimulus funds. Education Week.
Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org/media/bartoncomments.pdf
0 Greene, J. P. (2012, July 17). Do we need national standards to prevent a race to the bottom? EducationNext. Retrieved
from http://educationnext.org/do-we-need-national-standards-to-prevent-a-race-to-the-bottom/
0 Harris, D. N. (2010, March 31). The evidence on race to the top: Are the naysayers right? Education Week. Retrieved
from http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2010/03/31/27harris.h29.html?r=641791198
0 Hess, F. M. (2010, August 31). National review: Race to the top limps to a finish. NPR. Retrieved from
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129548452
0 Ladd, H. F. (2009, August 20). Comments on proposed regulations for education stimulus funds. Education Week.
Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org/media/laddcomments.pdf

14. References (Con’t)
0 Ravitch, D. (Multiple Dates). Various blog posts tagged “Race to the top.” Diane Ravitch’s blog.
Retrieved from http://dianeravitch.net/category/race-to-the-top/
0 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
0 Ravitch, D. (2009, September 9). The Start of an interesting and dangerous school year. Education
Week’s Blogs: Bridging Differences. Retrieved from http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/Bridging-
Differences/2009/09/editors_note_bridging_differen.html
0 Rich, M. (2013, April 17). Florida: Teachers Sue Over Evaluation System. The New York Times.
Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/17/education/florida-teachers-sue-over-
evaluation-system.html?ref=education
0 Spencer, K. (2013, April 14). Students face tougher tests that outpace lesson plans. The New York
Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/15/nyregion/with-tougher-standardized-
tests-a-reminder-to-breathe.html?ref=education
0 U.S. Department of Education, (2009). Race to the top executive summary. Retrieved from website:
http://www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop/executive-summary.pdf
0 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