do you think No Child Left Behind is working...why or why not?

Answer 1

Not really, the school systems are still lacking funding and it's sad that the work my child can turn in and ace was considered unacceptable when I went to school. The school system has become very lax about schoolwork in general. It's sad, really.

Answer 2

It might work if all the same kids stayed at the same school for about the next 5 or so years. It is an unrealistic expectation to put on our public school system, students change every year so there are no promises of good students. The expectations are also put on the Spec Ed kids, and the New English Learners (which is completely ridiculous), it should be the schools with lower grade averages to get more funding. But again we are to see a classic example of the rich getting richer, and the poor getting poorer.

Answer 3

Nope, not at all. I have a rare breed of child to begin with, but I have found that the federal public school system in general CANNOT meet his rather unique needs at all. He has ADD, and is extremely intelligent. But is failing almost every subject in school. He cannot learn from the standard "structure" used with the average child. His structure needs to be different. But independant school districts either cannot or will not hire the necessary teaching staff to accomodate his needs. So what is left? Constant fighting between me and the school, me and my child, me and my husband, to make sure that his educational needs are being met. And thru it all they are still not being met. He can't be put into special education because he scores off the charts on standardized testing. But put him in a classroom situation and, unless there is direct supervision, he cannot even complete a worksheet! Standardized tests tell us nothing except intelletcual level. Not day to day issues that cause a child to fall behind or just quit. Better school counseling and more alternative methods for those that are not the "norm". That is what our school needs.

Answer 4

NCLB promotes teaching-to-the-test. It knocks out 2 weeks of the school year's curriculum to standardized testing that could be better spent educating kids. It promotes cheating with statistics, as the dropout rates vs. test scores show where the program originated in Texas;it is a joke of test-rigging. The title is misleading, suggesting honorable intent. It also prevents school disctricts from concentrating worse students into a special school program at one school because no school wants a high concentration of people who'll bring down their scores. It may lead to increased segregation so there will be fewer breakdowns for a school to fail on. It makes a teacher's job much harder. It doesn't addres the problems; it does earmark time and money.

There are many valid follow-up points in this discussion, but most have dodged the asker's question.

Answer 5

Sandy S., you hit the nail right on the head! No amount of money replaces parental involvement where the education of children is concerned! Money buys books and pays teachers and such, but if the parents leave the kids to fend for themselves, well, we can see the results! So many kids live in two-income families...rarely see their parents, and when they do, the parents are often tired and irritable from working all day. Sigh. What did we do before there were organized schools? The parents taught the kids what they knew! Why don't we do that in today's society? The kids would (in most cases) be better for it!

Answer 6

I respect and like the President, but in a word NOOOOOO!!!!! I taught in the inner city for seven years before I ran for my life and I can assure you that many, many children are being left behind.

What good do those tests do when those children are not tested to find out what their myriad of problems are, including but not limited to, the environments they are born into? Many cannot read the test and of those who can many don't have a clue as to what it's saying.

When I, as the teacher, am busy breaking up fights left and right, and counseling, and do social work, and paper work out the wazoo, and serving breakfast in the classroom, and teaching things that should be learned in the home, like respect and manner and even how to use syrup on pancakes as one principal told me I should be doing rather than denying them it, when would I have time to even teach to the test as so many others do? I have been told to "do whatever I have to do" to make sure they did well and I know teachers who have bragged and laughed about going through the booklets and erasing answers to change them. I figured, why bother? I am not so creative as to come up with 30 different answers for each question of each test.

There's got to be a better way and I truly believe that it starts in the home with parents who give their children the stability to consider learning as a worthy activity. Thanks for letting me vent!

Answer 7

It is not, when a school doesn't get text books because the students test scores are down, and the test scores are down because they don't have text books doesn't this mean then that some students are left behind? Which is the case in one town in NJ

When financially you can't afford aspects of education yet due to race you are told you don't qualify for help isn't that being left behind?

Answer 8

Sure the school system is creating a group of mediocre students. Top students get pulled down to help make it look like bottom students have improved.

More funding will Not Solve Education Problems. More and better educators with less bureaucrats is a better solution. Really why do we pay high salaries to boards of education that do nothing to teach our children.

Answer 9

Good Lord, NO, Corkscrew! In my 8th grade class there are students who don't speak English, students who speak some English, Special ED. students, students too low for Special Ed ( yep... that's correct), students who are waiting to drop out, discipline students who are so disruptive they were sent back from the alternate school , students with mental problems ( law says they have a right to be here, too..... assistant principals don't want to deal with them, so here they are in the classroom), and a couple of bright kids who are bored out of their minds. My job is to prepare each of them for that big state test in April. When I asked how to make that happen when they cannot or will not read... I was told to " make it fun". Sure, that really works !!! Standardized testing has made public education a hell hole. If you have young children, do whatever you can to put them into a good private school.

Answer 10

No, I don't. I believe we are cranking out bodies that graduate from high school who are unprepared for life, much less college.

I believe there should be standards, and very high ones, that should be met at each age level, not grade level. Once those standards are met and there is a good foundation upon which to build, then the bar should be moved a little higher.

I am blessed to live in an area where the school standards are very high and I don't settle for mediocre efforts from my children. One daughter is in law school, one son graduated 11th out of 679 with a 4.67 GPA (Honors scale); one is a freshman in high school with a 3.78 GPA in ROTC and volunteers at an animal shelter and one is in middle school with a 3.92 GPA on the cheer squad.

Parental involvement is more important than any government standards in a heart beat!

Answer 11

No, because the children who are getting the benefits are getting it at the price of the other kids having to wait for them to catch up. We're dumbing down our bright kids while we wait for the ones who are most likely to drop out, to catch up. It's not fair to the high achieving students. It's like going to the Olympics and putting 50 pound weights on the atheletes who are favored to win and have proven records, so that other athelets can catch up. It's unfair and not condicive to a pregress oriented society which should encourage competition and nourish the driven.