Listening tour begins

Secretary Duncan is starting his 15 (at least) state listening tour with a visit to West Virginia yesterday:

''What No Child Left Behind did is, they were absolutely loose on the goals,'' Duncan told the Education Writers Association, meeting in Washington. ''But they were very tight, very prescriptive on how you get there.

''I think that was fundamentally backwards,'' he said.

Duncan said the federal government should be ''tight'' on the goals, insisting on more rigorous academic standards that are uniform across the states. And he said it should be ''much looser'' in terms of how states meet the goals.

The education community is watching closely to see just what Duncan means by ''tight'' and ''loose.'' So far, the administration has offered few clues.

And remember, he's taking suggestions on a new name!

Other states targeted for potential events include Michigan, Vermont, California, Montana, Wyoming, New Jersey, Tennessee, North Carolina, Washington D.C., Ohio, Indiana, Florida, Utah, and Alaska, according to the Department of Education's press release. Additional states and events may be added during the course of the tour.