CNN just carried this piece by Bill Bennett, an ex secretary of education, identifying the various low performance indicators of K-12 students. I personally cannot follow where this article goes – it mentions many issues and concerns and agendas, but I cannot figure out what Bill thinks is responsible for what.
The closest I think he comes to making a commitment is to comment on Florida
Florida, and the reform agenda former Gov. Jeb Bush instituted there, is one laboratory of experimentation getting a lot of attention these days. Some of his reforms with results include: ending social promotion, implementing performance pay for teachers, allowing alternative teacher certifications and creating a transparent system of grading schools and school districts.
The big data source for judging Florida reforms a success was an improvement in 4th grade reading performance.