Students today are a pretty solemn lot. One of the really notable achievements of the twentieth century has been to make the young old before their time.

We have certain standards that are mandated that students have to reach certain levels of achievement to go on to the next grade.

When you begin to do things that raise the achievement of the poorest and disenfranchised students, you may not always get applause. You need to be ready for that.

She was so impressed. She said these three students were by far the most intelligent and most articulate that she'd interviewed, and she asked if she could use all three.

That's driven by the recognition that research says that the most important factor in students' achievement is the effectiveness of the teacher.

I think our system is diverse (and) it provides opportunities. It's up to the students to really explore, evaluate and ask questions, examine and hold the groups accountable to what they say they are all about.