Obama Uses Compulsory Public Schools to Address Your Children Posted on Thursday, September 03 @ 06:27:18 EDT
Topic: Barack Obama
President Barack Obama to Make Historic Speech to America’s Students C-SPAN and White House Web Site to Broadcast Speech Live
Please note speech scheduled one hour earlier to Noon Eastern Time
On September 8, 2009, history will be made. Will you be a part of it?
At 12:00 p.m., Eastern Time (ET), President Barack Obama will deliver a national address to the students of America. (Please note that this is a change from the originally scheduled time.) During this special address, the president will speak directly to the nation’s children and youth about persisting and succeeding in school. The president will challenge students to work hard, set educational goals, and take responsibility for their learning.
The U.S. Department of Education encourages students of all ages, teachers, and administrators to participate in this historic moment by watching the president deliver the address, which will be broadcast live on the White House Web site (http://www.whitehouse.gov/live/) and on C-SPAN at 12:00 p.m., ET. We also encourage educators to use this moment to help students get focused and inspired to begin the new academic year. The Department of Education offers educators a menu of classroom activities—created by its teachers-in-residence, the Teaching Ambassador Fellows—to help engage students in the address and stimulate classroom discussions about the importance of education.
To learn more, please see the following:
Frequently Asked Questions
Classroom Activities (Pre-K – 6) PDF (115K) | MS Word (119K)
Classroom Activities (7 – 12) PDF (170K) | MS Word (184K)
To further encourage student engagement, the U.S. Department of Education is launching the "I Am What I Learn" video contest. On September 8, we will ask students to respond to the president’s challenge by creating videos, up to two minutes in length, describing the steps they will take to improve their education and the role education will play in fulfilling their dreams.
Please encourage all students age 13 and older to create and upload their videos to YouTube by October 8. Submissions can be in the form of video blogs, public service announcements (PSAs), music videos, or documentaries. Students are encouraged to have fun and be creative with this project! The general public will then vote on their favorites to determine the top 20 finalists. These 20 videos will be reviewed by a panel of judges including U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. The panel will choose three winners, each of whom will receive a $1,000 cash prize.
President Obama will speak to the students of America at 12:00 p.m., ET on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2009. (Note that this is a change from the time originally scheduled.)
2. How can I watch the president’s address to students?
Viewers may watch the address via the Internet by visiting the White House Web site, at http://www.whitehouse.gov/live/, where the address will be streamed live. C-SPAN, the cable public affairs network, will cover the president's speech live on its C-SPAN television channel and provide live streaming video online at C-SPAN.org. The speech also will be aired live on C-SPAN Radio (90.1 FM in Washington, D.C., and channel 132 on XM Satellite Radio).
White House television will make the address available via satellite for local broadcast outlets. Satellite coordinates will be posted on the White House Web site and www.ed.gov upon their availability. For updates related to the president’s speech, please visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/mediaresources/ or www.ed.gov.
3. What is the duration of the president’s address?
The president is scheduled to speak for 15 – 20 minutes. The U.S. Department of Education provides resources for educators who may choose to use the president’s address as a teachable moment. Two menus of classroom activities, one for students in grades Pre-K – 6, and another for students in grades 7 – 12, may be found here:
Classroom Activities (Pre-K – 6) PDF (115K) | MS Word (119K)
Classroom Activities (7 – 12) PDF (170K) | MS Word (184K)
4. Does the White House Web site have the capacity to host all of the potential live viewers for this event?
The White House Web site is equipped with the appropriate amount of bandwidth to accommodate a large viewership.
5. Will the address be available in some form after the original broadcast date and time?
Downloadable video of the speech will be made available on the White House Web site as well as on www.ed.gov. The URL address to access the archived webcast will be posted on both sites upon availability. C-SPAN.org will provide archived and "on-demand" viewing options.
6. Will the address include captioning for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers?
The live address broadcast on C-SPAN will include captioning.
7. Is the "Get Schooled" television event in the evening on Sept. 8 hosted by the Viacom network and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation connected to the president’s speech?
While the U.S. Department of Education is a partner in this effort, the president’s noontime address is a separate event. Get Schooled is a five-year national platform developed by Viacom and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation that connects, inspires, and mobilizes people to find effective solutions to education challenges. The initiative provides resources, information, and creative programming aimed at engaging a range of audiences in an effort to address America's education crisis. A television event, Get Schooled: You Have the Right, formally kicks off the "Get Schooled" initiative at 8:00 p.m., ET on Sept. 8.
The White House has released a statement saying that they will release the transcript of Obama's speech on the White House website on Monday. The administration is also assuring the public that the speech will not contain any political elements. Personally, I'll believe that when I see it, and only when I see it. This president is so partisan in his views I have absolutely no doubt that just as Nancy Pelosi calls herself, "post partisan", Obama would also consider his points of view to be bipartisan. While the administration continues to talk about working for bipartisan health reform, to date republicans have had almost no say in any of the legislation. The American public know these things and have very good reason to be skeptical. This president was elected to the White House on a wind of "change" and bipartisanship and has turned out to be the most partisan president I have lived under.
