How Obama Abandoned Chicago Schools
Based on Obama’s actions in Chicago in 1999, it’s hard to imagine him taking charge of the continuing debate over whether and how No Child Left Behind should be renewed. Forced to take a side, Obama’s record suggests that, ultimately, he would be sympathetic to local autonomy. But there’s not much evidence to show that he would be able to help mend deep and abiding schisms between testing hawks and local-control advocates. And without strong and unifying national leadership, our troubled public-education system stands little chance of making the dramatic improvements that it needs.