In 1979, Paul Hill did a study for the RAND Corporation and found that the average migrant, Hispanic student was enrolled in four or more different pullout programs. In cases like this, the director of research planning at NIE, Iris Rotberg noted that when students are receiving services in four or more programs, they are missing out on the basic educational curriculum.
When Reagan took office, his goals were to eliminate the federal department of education, consolidate programs, and reduce spending. A policy paper on developmental planning and fiscal guidance stated that the strategy was to set achieving educational excellence as a national goal, apply what is known about educational improvement to the dissemination effort, and focus on the effectiveness of schools by improving quality of schools through standards and testing. The only result was the development of the Adopt-a-School program.
The secretary of education, Ted Bell, requested that Reagan appoint members for a National Commission on Excellence in Education. Bell waited several months until he decided to appoint the committee himself. The committee released A Nation at Risk and Reagan agreed to receive the report. Reagan embraced the report and took credit for appointing the commission during the 1984 State of the Union Address.
Reagan used his commitment to education reform to win re-election in 1984. Bell wanted to continue the feelings of discomfort and he and his staff created the Wall Chart, which announced data on test scores, poverty, teacher salary, and dropout rates. As a result, states were convinced that state level data was needed. When Reagan announced that he did not plan to make education a priority during his second term, Bell resigned. Bill Bennett took his place.
In 1986, Bennett established a commission NAEP. Again, the need for state level comparison data was identified. Congress accepted this advice in 1988 to be first implemented in 1990. The National Assessment Governing Board named it The Nation’s Report Card.
Bennett also felt strongly about curriculum reform. He was especially passionate about reading and literature. Policy makers adopted these concerns for the improvement of reading instruction over the next 15 years.
Prior to the 1988 reauthorization of ESEA, there was not enough evidence that Title 1 was making a difference in the education. During the 1988 reauthorization, it was decided that in schools where 75% or more of students were receiving Title 1 services, services would be provided to all students.
The Reagan era paved the way for the establishment of educational standards and school accountability for students to meet these standards.
Cross, C. T. (2010). The Reagan years: The bully pulpit and loosening the strings. In Political education: National policy comes of age (71-90). New York, NY: Teachers College Press.