Legislative Priorities 2007-2009
Approved by the PTA National Board of Directors 10/07
National PTA Public Policy Program
2007–2009
The PTA National Public Policy Program is the primary authority for public policy action and statements taken by PTA on federal legislation, administration policies and regulations, and judicial rulings.
The PTA National Legislative Program has four components:
Legislative directives are the organization’s current legislative priorities. They are determined by the Legislative Committee and adopted by the PTA National Board of Directors.
Policy statements are broad statements on children’s issues that form the basis for resolutions and position statements or serve to reflect/delineate the overall policy as set forth in multiple, formal resolutions within the same policy or issue area. Policy statements become official when they are passed by delegates at the PTA National Convention or by the PTA National Board of Directors.
Resolutions are formal statements of PTA public policy or organizational policy passed by the delegates at the PTA National Convention. Any PTA can propose resolutions to the National Resolutions Committee, including resolutions directing or guiding federal legislative action or policy. The PTA National Resolutions Committee reviews submitted resolutions and recommends action to the PTA National Board of Directors. The PTA National Board of Directors forwards passed resolutions to the delegates at the PTA National Convention for consideration. Resolutions must be approved by the convention body and then ratified by the National PTA Board of Directors to become official policies of the organization.
Position statements are initiated by national committees of the PTA and approved by the PTA National Board of Directors. Positions statements provide guidance rather than prescribe specific policy actions to be taken by the organization and have the same level of authority as resolutions.
Legislative Directives
The legislative directives, formulated below, are based on the federal legislative and Executive branch agenda expected to be at the forefront this year. Rather than providing an exhaustive list of the areas in which PTA is involved, the directives are indicative of issues on which PTA expects to target its efforts and engage actively federal legislators, executive branch agencies and members of the federal judiciary. While PTA can, within limits, anticipate many of the issues debated and considered, it is not unusual for unexpected issues to emerge to which PTA responds. The National Legislative Committee and the PTA National Board of Directors may amend the organization’s legislative directives, particularly in response to changes in the Congressional or Executive branch leadership. All PTA federal public policy work, whether planned or unplanned in advance, is consistent with PTA’s directives, policy statements, resolutions, and position statements.
Parent Involvement
Identify, support and create legislative and regulatory provisions that advance and promote the PTA National Standards for Family-School Partnerships
Support, expand, and improve parent involvement policies in federal legislation, administrative regulations/policies and relevant cases considered by the federal court system
Support, expand, and improve school-linked parent resource centers, particularly the federally authorized Parent Information and
Support, expand, and improve methods to encourage and prepare teachers to engage parents effectively and frequently
Public Education
Support efforts to ensure public funds are used exclusively for public schools
Support, expand, and improve efforts to increase funding to provide quality education for all students
Support and improve accountability in the enforcement of district and school level development and implementation of parent involvement plans required by federal and state law and regulations
Support and improve programs that recruit, develop, and retain highly qualified educators
Support and improve student preparation for and access to post-secondary education and the workforce
Support efforts to facilitate the use of multiple assessments for evaluating student growth and performance, and decrease the emphasis on high-stakes testing, while maintaining accountability for student achievement
Support and improve legislative provisions, executive branch regulations, judicial actions that ensure accountability for the academic achievement of minority students and students from low income families
Support and improve federal legislative, administrative, and judicial actions that provide timely, accurate, complete information to parents enabling them to be better engaged in their child’s education, including clarification of their rights, roles, and responsibilities
Support, expand, and improve access to high quality early childhood education and after-school programs
Support and expand efforts to modernize school facilities and provide a healthy environment for students, teachers and other school personnel, particularly schools overseas operated by the Department of Defense that are not subject to state or federal building, fire, and safety codes
Media and Technology Safety
Support, expand and improve policies, regulations and legislation that better enable parents to be informed and engaged in the use of the Internet, wireless communications, and the selection of media by children and youth
Support and improve non-legislative, industry responses to media-technology safety needs of children and youth as an alternative to formal legislative and regulatory action
Support the development of improved media-technology tools for parents that are user-friendly, universal, accurate, and informative
Support and improve efforts to limit significantly advertising to children, particularly the use of familiar characters from animated television shows and movies for commercial promotions
Child Health and Wellness
Support, expand, and improve child nutrition, health, and wellness programs, including health insurance coverage for children in low-income families
Support efforts to provide adequate time and opportunity for physical fitness in all schools and recess in all elementary schools
Support and improve efforts to limit significantly advertising to children, particularly related to the promotion of unhealthy foods and drinks
Arts Education
Support and expand legislation and changes in executive agency regulations that include arts education in core requirements for a high quality, comprehensive public education
Support, expand and improve activities that prepare teachers to incorporates the arts into the curriculum of other academic subjects to supplement and engage student learning
Rationale
I. Parent Involvement
Parent involvement not only promotes student achievement, but also benefits school personnel and parents. Research has demonstrated that when parents are involved in a child’s education, students achieve more, regardless of socio-economic status, ethnic/racial background, or the parents’ education level. The most accurate predictor of a student’s achievement in school is not income or social status, but the extent to which that student’s family is involved in his or her education both in the school and at home. Parent involvement contributes to better school attendance, improved homework completion rates, decreased violence and substance abuse, and higher graduation rates. Parent involvement takes many forms including making decisions about children’s education, health, and well being, advocating for actions that support children’s success, and having a voice in the operations of the school system. Recognizing that parents are a child’s first educator, administrators, teachers, and school staff need clear direction and tools to enable parents to be engaged actively in their children’s education. Parents need access, accountability and information to be engaged actively in their child’s education, socialization, and development.
Long before research confirmed the above findings, PTA initiated successfully campaigns to incorporate parent involvement provisions in federal education programs. PTA’s on-going public policy priority is to build upon these gains and strengthen current parent involvement legislation, regulations, and judicial opinions.
II. Public Education
Public education provides a common experience for building and maintaining a commitment to the basic values of a democratic government. A strong system of public education is vital to our nation’s well being.
A sustained national commitment to increase federal spending for education is more critical than ever for strengthening our nation’s economy and ensuring a quality education for all students. PTA advocates for legislation that increases the federal commitment to education, targets funds to students most in need, and strengthens existing quality programs. ESEA-NCLB places increased demands on schools to improve student achievement. Additional targeted federal funds are necessary to implement the federal law, particularly in helping schools afford specific interventions demonstrated to improve student test scores, such as reducing class sizes in early grades, providing preschool programs, access to after-school programs, and ensuring students learn from highly qualified teachers. Increased investment in our education system is essential if we are to ensure the continued economic and national security of the
PTA supports using public funds exclusively for public schools and opposes vouchers, tax credits, deductions, “opportunity scholarships” and other such funding sources to finance education for private and religious schools. In addition, PTA opposes state and federal initiatives to limit significantly and arbitrarily, state and local funding for educations including the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, the 65% solution” and other similar funding restrictions on education.
III. Media-Technology Safety
The Internet, television, movies, music, and cell phones are a daily part of our children's lives. While electronic media and technology can open up vast new worlds of rich learning experiences to children, they can also convey messages about violence, sex, commercialism, stereotyping, and other themes that worry parents and can impact negatively a child’s development and socialization. It is the responsibility of parents, teachers, and other caregivers to monitor and control children's exposure to electronic media and technology and to promote family media literacy. Achieving a balance between the learning and positive entertainment opportunities available through electronic media and technology and the risks associated with exposure to inappropriate and occasionally dangerous content/activities is the responsibility of parents and other adults in a child’s life. However, without tools, information and resources that are easily accessible, user-friendly, and consistent, parents and other responsible adults are handicapped severely in their efforts to protect their children.
PTA works with a variety of organizations, agencies, and industry leaders in field of media-technology to improve the tools and resources available to parents to safeguard their children and youth as they explore the Internet. In addition, the Internet is a valuable educational resource, with access required for the completion of many school assignments. PTA continues it commitment to ensuring that public schools have affordable Internet access, and supporting legislation and regulatory changes designed to expand Internet access for students, particularly students of low-income families. PTA opposes censorship, but supports strongly industry initiatives that facilitate the ability of parents to make and enforce their child’s/youth’s viewing of family-defined appropriate content and participation in on-line activities such as social networking and blogs. Should industry initiatives fail to act in a responsible manner, PTA may revisit its reluctance to promote government regulation, particularly with regard to illegal activities.
PTA is committed to the development and use of media and technology that improves the quality of life by serving as a positive resource in the education, development, and socialization of children and youth. Parents, broadcast and cable media, content and service providers, and federal regulatory agencies have a responsibility to support, monitor, and improve the quality of electronic media and technology services, programs, productions, and safety mechanisms as well as provide tools and information for parents and other caretakers to make informed choices about their child’s use of the Internet and the broad variety of available media and technology resources.
IV. Child Health and Wellness
PTA supports and promotes improved child health and wellness, including nutrition, health insurance coverage for low-income children, physical fitness, and environmental safety at home, in schools and in the community. Today’s children and youth populations are remarkable for its changing health, education, and social needs.
Child obesity has become a health issue of epidemic proportions. Between the late 1970s and 2000, the percent of children ages 6–11 that are overweight more than doubled, and the percent of adolescents ages 12–19 who are overweight tripled. Our children’s diets and lack of exercise contribute to increased risks for heart disease, cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis, and other serious diseases.
The rise in poor nutrition, inactivity, and weight problems is not only damaging children’s health, but is also affecting adversely their academic achievement. Supporting child nutrition and wellness programs is a cost-effective investment that will save money in future expenses associated with poor nutrition and low academic achievement, such as school dropouts, unemployment, and preventable health problems.
Schools across the country are eliminating or reducing substantially student opportunities for physical exercise during the school day, including both physical education at all educational levels and recess in elementary schools. Studies show that providing more time for physical activity (by reducing class time for academics) can lead to improved test scores, particularly in the area of mathematics. Physical activity programs have also been linked to stronger academic achievement, increased concentration, and improved reading and writing test scores. Children who have daily physical education classes exhibit better attendance and have a more positive attitude about school. Children who spend less time in other subjects in order to allow for regular physical education have been shown to do equally well or better in academic classes. Parents and schools must work together to make quality daily physical education a priority in schools and to give children more opportunities to be physically active throughout the school day.
Advertising practices targeted at young children often rely on a child’s developmental inability to make distinctions between commercial promotion and factual information. PTA works with federal legislators and regulators as well as food and advertising industries to eliminate unfair advertising practices targeted at children that promote unhealthy lifestyles. In addition, PTA supports a substantial reduction in the availability of foods with no or minimal nutritional value at in-school venues such as vending machines, ala carte options school stores, and cafeterias.
V. Arts Education
Arts education not only cultivates imagination, self-expression, and creativity, but also plays a vital role in the development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills. It promotes visual literacy, which enables students to analyze and interpret the meaning of complex visual imagery that permeates the media and popular culture.
Additionally, the arts provide a point of departure for learning in other disciplines, including social studies, history, literature, science, and math. Research has shown that "arts education increases interest in academic learning, cognitive and basic skills development, and the development of academic achievement skills" (R.R. Konrad, Empathy, Arts, and Social Studies, 2000). Arts education presents a window through which students are exposed to a diverse and dynamic world of perspectives and cultures. And, among these many other benefits, arts education equips students with skills essential to success in the current economic environment.
Despite these findings and the inclusion of arts as one of the "core academic subjects" in the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), in many schools faced with tightening budgets fail to fund arts programs. Schools that provide little or no arts education are denying students the opportunity to master skills that will best prepare them for the highly competitive labor market of the 21st century. Arts education is a fundamental component of comprehensive learning for grades K-12.
Policy Statements
PTA public policy is guided by following concepts:
Federal agencies with responsibilities for education, health, labor, juvenile justice, and child welfare services for children and youth must have:
- Clearly defined responsibilities
- Provisions for adequate funding and structures to meet effectively clear legislative intent
- Methods for Congress and interested citizens to review the implementation of legislation and regulations
All federal legislation impacting health, labor, juvenile justice, and child welfare services for children and youth must include provisions that ensure maximum state and local control.
Federal and state support of services for children should ensure the equalization of opportunities.
The constitutional rights of the individual must be protected.
Education Policies
National PTA supports federal legislation toward the following goals:
To ensure that federal funds for education will be appropriated only for public schools that are publicly controlled and tax-supported.
To provide for adequate financial assistance for education beyond high school in publicly controlled, tax-supported institutions.
To encourage and assist school districts to meet the needs of special populations
To assist the provision of supplementary and supportive public school and community services on an equitable basis.
To encourage parent involvement, an essential part of the PTA mission and purposes, by promoting an environment in which parents are valued as primary influences in their children’s lives and essential partners in their children’s education, development, and socialization.
Health and Child Welfare Policies
National PTA supports federal legislation toward the following goals:
To assist states in providing necessary public health and welfare services for children, youth, and families
To promote, improve, and advance programs, services and policies that support the health, nutrition, and physical fitness needs of children and youth
To extend and support research focusing on the needs of children and families
To develop programs to strengthen local and state programs of prevention, control, treatment, and rehabilitation for juveniles
To protect the environmental qualities of life necessary to support the healthy growth and development of children and youth.
To provide consumer protections for youth and families
To provide adequate funding for school and community services to children in areas under federal government control
