President Obama and Education Reform by 
Whats Ahead in Education by Two of the pillars of recent federal education policy are the "Race To The Top" program and the "No Child Left Behind" law.
"Race To The Top" (R2T) is the popular name given to the programs enacted by the federal government with the passage of the education component of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Under R2T, states compete for generous federal funding by adopting policies that meet the criteria established by the program. These policies cover such areas as performance-based standards and assessment for teachers and principals, common core curriculum standards, charter schools, and steps taken to improve troubled schools.
Basic information resources for the "Race To The Top" policies include:
U.S. Department of Education - see especially the Recovery Act Highlights page and the Race to The Top home page.
