On Clinton’s Blackboard: 7 Steps for Education : Policy: The President outlines his agenda for ‘lifelong learning.’ His proposals come amid criticism that he remained silent too long.

Deflecting criticism that he has largely ignored education, President Clinton Tuesday outlined his Administration’s seven-step strategy for “lifelong learning” to reinvigorate the country and prepare it for the next century.

“If we really want America to grow jobs and to increase earnings, we will have to dramatically improve the levels of education of the American people,” Clinton told higher education administrators at a conference of the American Council on Education.

With the speech, his most comprehensive on the subject as President, Clinton clearly sought to dispel the notion that he had forgotten one of his top campaign subjects. Education Secretary Richard W. Riley said the speech “was a clear statement that education is back from the dead.”

Education provided Clinton with some of his major achievements as Arkansas governor. Although Clinton advanced several education initiatives during his first year as President, he had not stitched all the pieces together in a major address.

“He was waiting for the right time to make his personal move,” Riley said in an interview.

The speech came as several of Clinton’s education initiatives stood at critical junctures. Bills to establish the first national academic standards and encourage states to set up school-based apprenticeship programs are in House-Senate conference committees, and the House will soon consider legislation aimed at improving education for poor children.

Proponents of the Administration’s measures in Congress grumbled that the President’s speech would have been more effective several months ago.

“I think it would have helped tremendously if he had set out his agenda early,” said Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Los Angeles). “If he had put some muscle behind it, we could have had some real advances in education.”

In his speech, the President made it clear how each initiative fit into his new vision for education in America, and he linked these programs with his plans to restructure the unemployment system to stress retraining workers for new jobs. His seven steps:

* Help every child begin school healthy and ready to learn.

* Set and achieve world-class standards in public education.

* Make it possible for every able high school graduate to go to college.

* Create a domestic peace corps for young people to earn money for their education.

* Provide new apprenticeship programs for young people going from high school to work.

* Change the unemployment system into a re-employment system by instituting retraining and job placement programs.

* Challenge every sector of society to accept greater responsibility for achieving an environment of lifelong learning.

In the 19th Century, Clinton said, young Americans needed at most a high school education to ensure good earnings. A college education became essential during the 20th Century, he said, and “in the 21st Century, our people will have to keep learning all their lives.”

He pointed to a colorful graph showing that average yearly earnings in 1992 for Americans with four years of college were $11,000 above the average for high school graduates.

One reason Clinton has not needed to devote much time to this part of his domestic agenda is that it has broad support from both parties in Congress, said William Galston, a deputy assistant to the President for domestic policy.

Education experts stressed that although Clinton has not used his bully pulpit very much to push education reform, he has shown in other ways that the issue is a priority.