§ 5812. — National Education Goals.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 20USC5812]
TITLE 20--EDUCATION
CHAPTER 68--NATIONAL EDUCATION REFORM
SUBCHAPTER I--NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS
Sec. 5812. National Education Goals
The Congress declares that the National Education Goals are the
following:
(1) School readiness
(A) By the year 2000, all children in America will start school
ready to learn.
(B) The objectives for this goal are that--
(i) all children will have access to high-quality and
developmentally appropriate preschool programs that help prepare
children for school;
(ii) every parent in the United States will be a child's
first teacher and devote time each day to helping such parent's
preschool child learn, and parents will have access to the
training and support parents need; and
(iii) children will receive the nutrition, physical activity
experiences, and health care needed to arrive at school with
healthy minds and bodies, and to maintain the mental alertness
necessary to be prepared to learn, and the number of low-
birthweight babies will be significantly reduced through
enhanced prenatal health systems.
(2) School completion
(A) By the year 2000, the high school graduation rate will
increase to at least 90 percent.
(B) The objectives for this goal are that--
(i) the Nation must dramatically reduce its school dropout
rate, and 75 percent of the students who do drop out will
successfully complete a high school degree or its equivalent;
and
(ii) the gap in high school graduation rates between
American students from minority backgrounds and their non-
minority counterparts will be eliminated.
(3) Student achievement and citizenship
(A) By the year 2000, all students will leave grades 4, 8, and
12 having demonstrated competency over challenging subject matter
including English, mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics
and government, economics, arts, history, and geography, and every
school in America will ensure that all students learn to use their
minds well, so they may be prepared for responsible citizenship,
further learning, and productive employment in our Nation's modern
economy.
(B) The objectives for this goal are that--
(i) the academic performance of all students at the
elementary and secondary level will increase significantly in
every quartile, and the distribution of minority students in
each quartile will more closely reflect the student population
as a whole;
(ii) the percentage of all students who demonstrate the
ability to reason, solve problems, apply knowledge, and write
and communicate effectively will increase substantially;
(iii) all students will be involved in activities that
promote and demonstrate good citizenship, good health, community
service, and personal responsibility;
(iv) all students will have access to physical education and
health education to ensure they are healthy and fit;
(v) the percentage of all students who are competent in more
than one language will substantially increase; and
(vi) all students will be knowledgeable about the diverse
cultural heritage of this Nation and about the world community.
(4) Teacher education and professional development
(A) By the year 2000, the Nation's teaching force will have
access to programs for the continued improvement of their
professional skills and the opportunity to acquire the knowledge and
skills needed to instruct and prepare all American students for the
next century.
(B) The objectives for this goal are that--
(i) all teachers will have access to preservice teacher
education and continuing professional development activities
that will provide such teachers with the knowledge and skills
needed to teach to an increasingly diverse student population
with a variety of educational, social, and health needs;
(ii) all teachers will have continuing opportunities to
acquire additional knowledge and skills needed to teach
challenging subject matter and to use emerging new methods,
forms of assessment, and technologies;
(iii) States and school districts will create integrated
strategies to attract, recruit, prepare, retrain, and support
the continued professional development of teachers,
administrators, and other educators, so that there is a highly
talented work force of professional educators to teach
challenging subject matter; and
(iv) partnerships will be established, whenever possible,
among local educational agencies, institutions of higher
education, parents, and local labor, business, and professional
associations to provide and support programs for the
professional development of educators.
(5) Mathematics and science
(A) By the year 2000, United States students will be first in
the world in mathematics and science achievement.
(B) The objectives for this goal are that--
(i) mathematics and science education, including the metric
system of measurement, will be strengthened throughout the
system, especially in the early grades;
(ii) the number of teachers with a substantive background in
mathematics and science, including the metric system of
measurement, will increase by 50 percent; and
(iii) the number of United States undergraduate and graduate
students, especially women and minorities, who complete degrees
in mathematics, science, and engineering will increase
significantly.
(6) Adult literacy and lifelong learning
(A) By the year 2000, every adult American will be literate and
will possess the knowledge and skills necessary to compete in a
global economy and exercise the rights and responsibilities of
citizenship.
(B) The objectives for this goal are that--
(i) every major American business will be involved in
strengthening the connection between education and work;
(ii) all workers will have the opportunity to acquire the
knowledge and skills, from basic to highly technical, needed to
adapt to emerging new technologies, work methods, and markets
through public and private educational, vocational, technical,
workplace, or other programs;
(iii) the number of quality programs, including those at
libraries, that are designed to serve more effectively the needs
of the growing number of part-time and midcareer students will
increase substantially;
(iv) the proportion of the qualified students, especially
minorities, who enter college, who complete at least two years,
and who complete their degree programs will increase
substantially;
(v) the proportion of college graduates who demonstrate an
advanced ability to think critically, communicate effectively,
and solve problems will increase substantially; and
(vi) schools, in implementing comprehensive parent
involvement programs, will offer more adult literacy, parent
training and life-long learning opportunities to improve the
ties between home and school, and enhance parents' work and home
lives.
(7) Safe, disciplined, and alcohol- and drug-free schools
(A) By the year 2000, every school in the United States will be
free of drugs, violence, and the unauthorized presence of firearms
and alcohol and will offer a disciplined environment conducive to
learning.
(B) The objectives for this goal are that--
(i) every school will implement a firm and fair policy on
use, possession, and distribution of drugs and alcohol;
(ii) parents, businesses, governmental and community
organizations will work together to ensure the rights of
students to study in a safe and secure environment that is free
of drugs and crime, and that schools provide a healthy
environment and are a safe haven for all children;
(iii) every local educational agency will develop and
implement a policy to ensure that all schools are free of
violence and the unauthorized presence of weapons;
(iv) every local educational agency will develop a
sequential, comprehensive kindergarten through twelfth grade
drug and alcohol prevention education program;
(v) drug and alcohol curriculum should be taught as an
integral part of sequential, comprehensive health education;
(vi) community-based teams should be organized to provide
students and teachers with needed support; and
(vii) every school should work to eliminate sexual
harassment.
(8) Parental participation
(A) By the year 2000, every school will promote partnerships
that will increase parental involvement and participation in
promoting the social, emotional, and academic growth of children.
(B) The objectives for this Goal are that--
(i) every State will develop policies to assist local
schools and local educational agencies to establish programs for
increasing partnerships that respond to the varying needs of
parents and the home, including parents of children who are
disadvantaged or bilingual, or parents of children with
disabilities;
(ii) every school will actively engage parents and families
in a partnership which supports the academic work of children at
home and shared educational decisionmaking at school; and
(iii) parents and families will help to ensure that schools
are adequately supported and will hold schools and teachers to
high standards of accountability.
(Pub. L. 103-227, title I, Sec. 102, Mar. 31, 1994, 108 Stat. 130.)
