The National Debate about American Public Education for the 21st Century

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There are three ways you can engage in this important debate.

The first and easiest is to simply answer any or all of our quick poll questions, on the lower right of this page.

The second is to provide your input via text or audio/video to any or all of the big education questions listed below.

The third and most intensive way to participate in this critical debate is to respond or add to the questions provided in each of the specific areas of education linked below (see left hand side of this page for debate guidelines).

However you decide to participate, we appreciate your valuable input and look forward to sharing it with our nation's new leadership when they take office in January, 2009 so that our children will continue to learn and grow in our great American Public Schools.

The questions are broken up into categories below, click on a category to see the questions. On the left side of each page are links to all of the topics, use these to connect to topics that you wish to discuss. This is not a comprehensive list of questions. It represents those that the facilitators identified through their own knowledge and experience. Therefore, we have provided a link at the bottom of each page called "Additional Questions," enter any questions that you would like to add to the discussion there.

What is the purpose of public education in America? Is that purpose still relevant and meeting our national need? Why or why not?

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How do we insure that public schools are preparing students to be productive and engaged citizens in the 21st Century America?

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What should accountability look like and mean for public education? How should it apply to school leaders, teachers, students and parents?

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Are we currently funding public schools in a fair and equitable manner? If not, how can we make it equitable for students and fair for taxpayers?

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What does a high quality education look like, how do we measure it and ensure all students have access to it?

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Debate Questions -- Curriculum and Standards

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Debate Questions -- Assessment and Accountability

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Debate Questions -- Social Justice and Equity

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Debate Questions -- Community and Family

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Debate Questions -- Teaching and Learning

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Debate Questions -- Scheduling, Safety, Infrastructure and Facilities

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Debate Questions -- Leadership

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Debate Questions -- School Funding and Law

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Additional Questions

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Add your question in the comment section on this post and we will add it to our list.