No child left behind. Good or Bad? Explain.?

Answer 1

I think it is a bad idea because if you are a slow learner and the teacher hasn't got time to spend with you, then all she is doing is pushing a student out the front door with out the education they need.

I think it is a disgrace on the kids who struggle with school work and then to have someone come along with -no child left behind is a slap in the face for the student.

All this is doing is telling teachers that we don't want you to really teach all we want you to do is act as a baby setter for 7 hours a day.

Answer 2

Sounds good. Is bad. This question was answered a couple of years ago on a web blog, probably much better than I can do now. The President's plan for not leaving any child behind is not solving the problem. It is penalizing the schools rather than helping the children. In order to give every student a quality education, the government must improve the poorer schools with more of your tax money.

Answer 3

It is a terrible idea to assume that all people can learn everything in the same way, at the same rate, at the same time. The no child left behind act signifies a lowering of standards that is sending ripples throughout the nation. One only has to look around and see that more and more schools are having trouble keeping up with the regulations, especially when educational funding is cut every year. This program is unfair for special education students and upper level students. When you teach to the middle of the learning curve, the upper level students are bored and the lower level students are lost. If you teach to the lowest level students then the middle and high level students get bored. A student who is bored in school is wasting his or her time. This is why we see more and more parents home schooling their children. The quality of education is not something we can afford to cut corners on. What will happen when these children get out into the real world and don't have the skills necessary to find and maintain employment? What will happen to these children when they get out into the real world and don't understand how to take care of themselves? All they will be able to do is complain that the task is too hard and then demand that someone else do it. The NCLBA also cuts time from arts and humanities instruction to focus on high stakes testing, which goes against everything that history has taught us. Every society that has ever existed on this planet has had some type of visual art, music, literature, dance, etc. Our culture is what truly separates us from the animals. It is the difference between surviving and living. Cultural education programs are fading out quickly due to lack of funding and interest. Please keep this in mind in November when you vote. If your congressman, senator, or any other elected official wants to take one more penny from education vote them out of office! If they don't actively want to improve the quality of education vote them out. Sorry to get on my soap box, but this is a problem that will affect us for generations. Don't lower standards, enforce them.

Answer 4

As currently being presented, I think it is bad. If it is intended on making sure a child has the necessary opportunities in school, then why are we being so focused on the Adequate Yearly Progress of the schools? Shouldn't we instead be looking at the AYP of each individual child. I recently read that North Carolina is going in that direction through a pilot program with the Department of Education. I think that is great. That is the direction I hope NCLB is headed for everyone.

Answer 5

Good in theory (accountability & standards) but bad in practice.

For example, many school districts are considered failing because special ed students aren't meeting the same standards set for mainstream kids. But the reason they are in special ed is because they *can't* meet the same standards as mainstream kids. So districts risk losing federal funding because kids who aren't able to operate at normal levels aren't operating at normal levels. Idiocy.

All the issues of testing bias are also in play for NCLB. Upper-to-middle class white communities have an advantage on the exams. My child attended a school that had a huge population of refugees from Sudan. The answer to one of the test questions required the kids to infer that a father wanted a child to help him mow the grass. These were kids from a desert who now lived in the inner city. They didn't know mowing the grass from shovelling snow! Many had been speaking English for less than a year but they still had to meet identical standards (which to the school's credit they amazingly did!).

One of the best bumper stickers I ever saw was "We finally found the weapon of mass destruction; it's called 'No Child Left Behind'."

Answer 6

This is the Best idea anyone ever had. If a teacher
or his or her peers sees someone thats a little slow
on learning, then extra attention for that child is not
only essential but necessary so that our Constitution and the Word of God remains true, that all people are
equal. We should be willing to pull each other up,
when the need is shown. Thats what being an American
is all about.

Answer 7

Bad because it goes against the law of nature. Not everyone is created equal. Everyone should learn at their own speed to excel, not at the speed of others. We should inspire each person to maximize their potential instead of being on top of...Relative to what?

Our education system is becoming a joke. Students make the rules and become customers, demanding easy exams, easy As as they're paying (or buying) for their education. It worse that the parents who are so ignorant to come to school and demand the same for their kids. So many universities are literally selling worthless degrees, and I'm not talking about online degrees. Wake up people!

Answer 8

Good...First, our children are our future...Every child should be given the same opportunity to learn and grow. We are not all born to the rich or the poor, our children are not equally given the benefits and resources even in this day and age. But given this idea it will enable the children at all levels of income, access to education and resources, adult guidance, and physical and mental needs to at least be given a chance for a life with meaning and worth. Not every child can achieve at the same level but this will at least give each child the opportunity to achieve and be a worthy member of society. Given all of this perhaps we will have less criminals, a culture of young people who learn respect and can work together toward a common goal of making the world a better place for generations to come.

Answer 9

BAD...As a first year teacher I see many flaws. Too much time spent testing. Not enough money provided by federal government to help schools fulfill requirements. Good, experienced teachers going by the wasteside becuase of a lack of credentials. Excessive requirements for teachers without proper funding to make things happen. i could go on, but read some of the other comments and you'll find more...

Answer 10

Bad, it assumes that all kids come in on the same level academicly, socially, and financially. If you take 2 kindergarteners, one from a upper middle class family with two college educated parents, where mom works part time and is home when the child leaves for school and returns home from school, the other from a poor family with one high school graduate parent who works 12 hour shifts for 4 to 5 days a week and is home when the child leaves for school but has to put the child in after-school care until he get off work in the evenings. The first child will get the benefit of having a parent who is not exhausted in the evenings and can work on colors, letter recognition, sounds, numerical values and other important stuff. The second child may get some of that but there's no way in the world the second child can get the same amount of extra time the first child does. As as the second child get older the lack of his parents education will begin to affect the amount of extra work time he'll get because the second parent my not be able to assist in the assignments because of lack of knowledge. The second child, because of his parents work schedule, also will not be able to participate in extra-curricular tutoring ( you've got to have a parent able to pick u up). This child rarely get to participate in after school sports and clubs for the same reasons which increases student achievement.

The two kids come from two different places, but NCLB expects them to be able to perform to the same level. It's unrealistic.

And the scenario I set up are assuming both homes are positive, loving and desire their children to perform well.

In cases where a parent is strung out on drugs, has too many kids, extremely poor, a high school drop out (below the 11th grade), non-English speaking, special needs (disabled either mentally or physically), not involved and unconcerned with their child success the situation gets even worse. There is little money in NCLB to help offset these situations and even if there were, many school system are unaware of the problems kids face outside the school.

A good analogy is 2 college graduates with the same GPA, degree and first job and salary. One graduates debt free and begins to work. The other graduate $50,000 in debt. They both work for a year. Who will have the most cash saved at the end of one year, assuming they manage their money at the the same rate? The one who started out in the best position. The same goes with children. You can only expect them to excell as far as they are able to DEPENDING ON WHERE THEY BEGIN. If they don't start at the same place, how can u expect them to end up at the same place in the same amount of time.

If we looked at where a child begins, it's more practical and realistic to determine where they should progress to. Some children will be exceptions and go much further than expected and other won't be able to do as well as expected even when they do their best.

NCLB also give educators too much responsibility. Teachers can only offer the education. They can make lessons exciting, real-world oriented, hands-on, at the students level of performance, and interesting, but if the students don't want to be at school, they won't perform. Teachers see this in students who have many problems at home. Often they can't concentrate , are sleepy, hungry, worried or depressed. And this is not just a few kids either. It's quite a bit. And when you call the parents, teachers often learn where the problems are coming from.

NO, No Child Left Behind is not a good legislative piece. And the country will see the backlash from it for many years.