With the lure of $5 billion in grants, the Obama administration is putting the federal government in a strong position to influence the direction of education.

The new grant program takes a positive approach toward school reform. Called Race to the Top, it seeks to encourage states to embrace current trends in education reform, like comprehensive testing and charter schools. According to the Associated Press, seven states quickly lifted restrictions on charter schools so they could compete for funds.

Investing $5 billion in schools is  bound to have a positive impact. But like No Child Left Behind, the new grant program expands federal influence over education policy. And while we believe national collaboration and investment is needed to aid schools, we hope education can remain primarily a state and local responsibility.

With states struggling to balance budgets, local independence may be seen as expendable. Last week Education Secretary Arne Duncan invited hard-pressed governors to compete for cash. In a column in the Washington Post, he said the grants amount to the largest amount of money the federal government has ever offered to schools, adding: “(It) easily outstrips the combined sums of discretionary funds for reform that all of my predecessors had.”

The goal of the  grants is to improve the quality of American education. To do so, Duncan said he will pursue reforms in four areas: Adoption of tougher academic standards, hiring of effective teachers, tracking student performance through testing, and taking steps to turn around failing schools.

The administration must still face up to the problems with the No Child Left Behind law, which seeks to improve student proficiency largely through the threat of school sanctions. Since the Department of Education relies on states to do their own testing, some have chosen assessment schemes that enable schools to avoid penalties.

The federal zeal for test data also overlooks aspects of education that are not measurable by standardized tests. To be successful, a teacher must impart specific skills and knowledge; but good teachers also provide leadership, inspire independent thinking and help students who are struggling.

The Department of Education should continue to look for positive ways to provide help to local schools. A current project is working with states to develop a common core of standards in language arts and math. This is a goal worth pursuing. Once such standards are established, it will be much easier to evaluate teaching performance.

Arne Duncan last week described the Race to the Top fund as education reform’s moon shot. Like NASA’s outreach programs, the Department of Education should search for opportunities to collaborate in ways that help schools and teachers succeed in their mission.

— Questions? Comments? Contact Kristen Schulze Muszynski or Nick Cowenhoven at 282-1535 or kristenm@journaltribune.com or nickc@journaltribune.com.