Barack Obama Quotes

We used to have superb public schools. I guess we don't anymore, but, boy, the public schools were really something and I am a product of those in Indianapolis.

I think people don't talk enough about education and what we need to do in our public education system.

I am very proud of the quality of public education in Nebraska, but I believe we have an obligation to continually assess whether our system is meeting 21st Century education needs.

The key for all cities is whether you turn the public schools around.

We know that there will never be a great Newark unless there is a great public school system for our city.

I say, too, with education, America needs to be putting a lot more focus on that and our schools have got to be really ramped up in terms of the funding that they are deserving. Teachers needed to be paid more.

Our public education system does a great job. I don't think it's broken. We aren't interested in doing reform for reform's sake. I believe in public education; it did a great job for me. It deserves our support and encouragement.

In my mind, there is no reason public school reform should be a partisan issue.

For many years we have spent a great deal of effort and money on school reform. Yet where are we today?

It is possible to have a public education system that works.

It's hard to improve public education - that's clear.

We - our children need a quality public education.

We need better public education and more realistic education.

A great economy requires great public schools.

American education will be determined by the quality of American public education, and that's public schools that are available.

If there's one thing that 'No Child Left Behind' has proven, it's that more academics don't make for smarter children - or even higher test scores. And yet we somehow refuse to accept this reality.

I'm a very big public school advocate.

When I was mayor of New York, my views changed. I began as mayor of New York City thinking that I could reform the New York City school system. After two or three years, four years, I became an advocate of choice, of scholarships, and vouchers, and parental choice, because I thought that was the only way to really change the school system.

Frankly, I'm not sure how far I would get if I attended public school today. It's not just that public schools aren't producing the results we want - it's that we're not giving them what they need to help students achieve at high levels. K-12 education in the United States is deeply antiquated.

There has been a growing consensus across the country - from statehouses to the White House and the halls of Congress - that we need to take dramatic steps to improve our secondary schools.

I'm clear that we do need to improve what's happening in our schools.

America needs education reform on all levels to expand quality schools, build on past successes, and lower college debt.

We have to build a better education in this country. We need to step it up.

Nor, in our own country, must we fail to take notice of the establishment of School Boards.

We must revamp K-12 education law to ensure Washington does not stand in the way of meaningful reforms.