This is the second progress report under "Academics 2000: First Things First," a Texas initiative under the Goals 2000 program. The Academics 2000 Education Improvement Plan, adopted in 1995, is organized under the nine objectives for Texas public education listed in the Texas Education Code. The progress report discusses implementation…

Begins with a look at the year's major education news: implications of the massacre at Columbine High School, major Supreme Court decisions, and pro- and anti-voucher political rhetoric. Following is an analysis of how the nation is doing on the Goals 2000. Other sections take the pulse of public education and analyze the challenges faced by…