Republican debate: Who said what about education?
Republican presidential candidates sparred over the economy, health care and immigration in last night’s debate at the Ronald Reagan Library. Like in the previous debate, only two candidates were questioned about education policy, and neither took the opportunity to say anything groundbreaking.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, when asked about the recent $5 million budget cuts he’s made to public education, defended them, saying “the reductions we made were thoughtful reductions.” He declined to elaborate on the logic behind the move, though. Instead, as he has many times so far on the campaign trail, Perry touted his record of improvement in the state’s schools, citing graduation rates that have climbed to 84 percent.
According to the Texas Department of Education, graduation rates for the 2009-2010 school year were, in fact, slightly above 84 percent. But by another measure, the State Rankings 2009, the state ranked 43rd out of 50
