Obama starts ‘Race to the Top’ for schools to beat India, China

September 16th, 2009 White House: Criticism of Obama not based on raceWASHINGTON — The White House says President Barack Obama doesn't believe he's being criticized because of his race. Spokesman Robert Gibbs said Wednesday that Obama — the nation's first black president — doesn't think that criticism of his policies is "based on the color of his skin." Gibbs was asked about the topic following comments on Tuesday by former President Jimmy Carter.

September 8th, 2009 LONDON - A record breaking 205,000 plastic ducks floated down the Thames on Sunday as part of the third annual Great British Duck Race in London. The event shattered the previous record of 175,000 ducks in a similar race held in China earlier this year.

August 26th, 2009 Obama wants states to overhaul failing schoolsWASHINGTON — The Obama administration is making good on a promise to use federal dollars to prod local officials to turn around failing schools. Education Secretary Arne Duncan on Wednesday told states how he wants them to spend $3.5 billion in money from the federal School Improvement Fund.

August 22nd, 2009 Teachers' union criticizes Obama on schools stanceWASHINGTON — The National Education Association pointedly criticized the Obama administration, saying the president is relying too heavily on charter schools and standardized tests in his attempt to overhaul the nation's schools. "We urge the administration to step outside of this narrow agenda," the nation's largest teachers union said in a public statement filed Friday with the Education Department.

July 29th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - While Pakistan has reacted sharply to the launch of India's first nuclear-powered submarine INS-Arihant, saying such a step would only increase arms race in the region and that it is 'detrimental to regional peace and stability', an editorial in a leading Pakistan daily said it was premature to say that New Delhi's big leap forward would really pose a threat. An editorial in the Dawn said Islamabad must not react to India joining the exclusive club of US, Russia, China, France and the UK.

July 28th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - A day after the Pakistan Navy expressed concern over India announcing the launch of its first indigenously built nuclear submarine - the INS Arihant saying it could trigger off an arms race in South Asia, the Pakistan Foreign Office has said that such a step would destabilise the region and would have a detrimental effect on regional peace. "Continued induction of new lethal weapon systems by India is detrimental to regional peace and stability," Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said.

July 27th, 2009 Obama: US, China to work on halting nuclear spreadWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says the U.S. and China have a shared interest in halting the spread of nuclear weapons.

July 15th, 2009 WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama says his administration is building a 21st century education system in America to compete with "China and India and everybody else all around the world". The US has "to ensure that we're educating and preparing our people for the new jobs of the 21st century", he said, talking about the "American Graduation Initiative" Tuesday at a Community College in Warren, Michigan.

July 1st, 2009 NEW YORK - Alaska Governor Sarah Palin may have lost the race to become the next US vice-president, but she has told Runner's World, a sports magazine that she could beat President Barack Obama in long-distance running. "If [it] were a long race that required a lot of endurance I'd win.

May 25th, 2009 PATNA - The headmasters of four primary schools in Bihar's Darbhanga district were suspended for irregularities in the mid-day meal scheme for schoolchildren, officials said Monday. The headmasters were suspended Saturday after an enquiry found them guilty of corruption.

May 22nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Delhi Education Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely congratulated the students of government schools whose performance in the CBSE class 12th results, declared Friday, had improved compared to last year. The overall pass percentage of Delhi government schools has gone up by 1.44 percent.

May 11th, 2009 Obama wants to see 5,000 failing schools closeWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama wants to see 5,000 failing schools close and reopen with new principals and teachers over the next five years. Education Secretary Arne Duncan says kids have only one shot at a good education.

May 8th, 2009 AP source: Obama wants to extend voucher programWASHINGTON — An administration official says President Barack Obama wants to extend the school voucher program in the District of Columbia until students now in the program graduate from high school. Obama plans to release his proposal in detail on Thursday.

May 3rd, 2009 Obama: Kemp's commitment to race, class equalityWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says Jack Kemp's work in politics shaped not just his Republican Party, but also the country. Obama remembers the quarterback-turned-politician as someone who held strong beliefs and who learned valuable lessons on the football field.

March 20th, 2009 WASHINGTON -'We can't afford our kids to be mediocre at a time when they're competing against kids in China and kids in India,' US President Barack Obama has said. Interacting with local residents at California's Costa Mesa town hall Wednesday, Obama said, 'It can't just be a single high-stakes standardized test - but we do need to have strong, powerful measures of performance, because schools are like anything else.' 'We can't afford our kids to be mediocre at a time when they're competing against kids in China and kids in India who are actually in school about a month longer than our kids.