We SO don’t want it to be about the $87K. But how to square the chasm between their education agendas?

Vouchers:

Governor Corzine:
“I will not support private school vouchers! Vouchers take resources away from the very schools that need them most. In fact, vouchers will break the bank by paying twice for the public’s charge to educate our kids.”

Reverend Jackson:
“We need more school choice. We need to break the monopoly of the public school system. We need to build on this success by at least experimenting with vouchers in the K-12 system.”

Teacher Tenure:

Gov. Corzine:
“I believe in teacher quality. We need stronger teacher quality assessment and an ability to make sure we have quality teachers in the classroom. … That doesn’t mean tenure is bad. … It’s not about tenure, it’s about the performance of the teacher in the classroom.”

Rev. Jackson:
“The head of New Jersey’s Black Ministers Council said public school reform begins with revising tenure. The Rev. Reginald Jackson said no other profession gives lifetime job security after three years. He said tenured teachers have no incentive to do their best.”

On student achievement in N.J.:

Gov. Corzine:
“Our overall performance is outstanding. In almost every category, we’re in the top five. On the National Assessment of Educational Progress, in 2007, New Jersey fourth-graders ranked higher than those in 46 other states and jurisdictions, and eighth-graders outperformed those in 35 states. “We’re closing the achievement gap for our urban children by double digits in the last five years. It has a lot to do with early childhood education.”

Rev. Jackson:
“The state’s public education system covers up failure, deprives students of a quality education and fosters a false sense of high achievement, the head of New Jersey’s Black Ministers Council said yesterday.
“New Jersey spends more on education than any other state in the nation and we are getting so little in return for the money we are spending. We’ve come today to pull the covers off this coverup.”

On the Special Review Assessment:

Gov. Corzine:
“While some people take issue with the state’s high school graduation rate, which includes students who graduated via the “alternative” SRA graduation test, New Jersey is a leader on national assessments.”

Rev. Jackson:
“The SRA provides New Jersey with a means of masquerading the fact that many of its students have not mastered what is supposed to be learned,” he said. “It is a coverup. It is a dummied-down route to graduation. If kids have not learned, we ought not give them a diploma.”

It’s enough to make a cynic out of the most ardent idealist…