Bush Says All Students Must Be Held To High Expectations

Jeb Bush says the nation's education system must hold all schoolchildren to high expectations or they won't succeed.

The former Florida governor addressed Georgia lawmakers Thursday after a swing through the early voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

In his remarks, Bush made only indirect reference to education standards that have become a point of contention with conservatives as he prepares for a possible run for the Republican presidential nomination. He said state lawmakers must develop education systems that prepare children for a career landscape that is changing at "warp speed."

He also talked about the need for broader reforms that would give parents more choice in schools.

""If we stand pat with what we have, here's the deal– a child that's going to be born in your public hospital may never get a job.," he told state lawmakers. "Or, if you have the courage to continue down the path of reform and every state does this, everybody born in this country will have a chance to achieve, earn, succeed."

Unlike most of his GOP rivals, Bush favors Common Core education standards that were developed with state leaders from both parties but have become branded by some conservatives as a federal takeover of classrooms.

Tags: Jeb Bush, GOP, Georgia lawmakers, education, education standards