Obama tells students to prep for life-long learning

America's future remains bright because of its students, President Obama told high schoolers today in a back-to-school address.

"You're not just kids. You're this country's future," Mr. Obama said, speaking at Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in Washington, D.C. "Whether we fall behind or race ahead in the coming years is up to you."

On average, about one out of four high school students in Washington, D.C. will not graduate. But Banneker, a magnet school, claims to have a 100 percent graduation rate, with all of its seniors getting accepted into four-year colleges.

The president warned the students that they can't stop their education after high school. More than 60 percent of jobs in the next decade will require more than a high school degree, and the new economy requires "life-long learning," he said.

"That's the world that you're walking into," he added. At every level of government, Mr. Obama said, people are working to prepare students for the real world, to build up an education system "worthy of your potential."

Last week, Mr. Obama took executive action to make a significant change to the education system, granting states the ability to opt out of the No Child Left Behind Law. Mr. Obama signed an executive order to grant states waivers, arguing the change will give states more control over how to deal with troubled schools.

The waiver would exempt a state from some of the Bush-era law's requirements, but states would be required to raise their educational standards before receiving the waiver.

Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidate and Texas Gov. Rick Perry is scrutinizing Mr. Obama's own education initiative, Race to the Top. The initiative, which actually has bipartisan support, encourages states to compete for federal education funding by coming up with the best education reforms.