Goals 2000: Opportunities and Caveats

The passage of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act augurs a new era in the evolution of educational policy. Although states and localities will continue to pay well over 90 percent of the costs of elementary and secondary education, Goals 2000 heralds a dramatic shift in the locus of educational-policy formulation which will alter significantly the traditional prerogatives of federal, state, and local education officials. For the first time, the federal government will have substantial influence on what is taught, how it is taught, and how educational programs are evaluated. Federal officials will also help determine the capacity of schools to achieve the national standards outlined in Goals 2000.

What are the implications of Goals 2000, and why does the strengthened federal role embedded in the legislation have such profound ramifications for the governance and effectiveness of schools? What are the potential pitfalls policymakers at all governmental levels should consider? What are some of the opportunities inherent in this legislation? Goals 2000, the reauthorization of the U.S. Education Department's office of educational research and improvement, and the passage of the safe-schools bill reflect the recent saliency of education issues on the federal scene. Along with the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and school-to-work legislation, these Clinton Administration education initiatives represent the most proactive federal policy agenda in 30 years. For the first time there will be a structure for developing standards for all students that ostensibly will permit the nation to compete more effectively in an increasingly competitive international economy. The implications of this...