No Child Left Behind Act?

Question

Hi All, I'm writing an article for my Opinion Writing class on this Act. (I'm a freshman in college) and I was looking to see what other people's opinions on on the No Child Left Behind Act were. I'd appreciate serious answers. For more information, check out Wikipedia and let me know what you think.

Answers are appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

The NCLB Act is horrific for education. Too much focus on standardize test and not classroom education. Testing the kids en masse doesn't tell you how they're doing as individuals. As a member of the Local School Council, I see that the teachers are so focused, all year, on getting the test scores up that they can't be flexible with their class curriculums. I've seen students who do well in class by getting B's and C's almost, and sometimes actually, fail a grade because their ISAT test scores were low. This is utterly riduculous! Especially considering that children don't test well for different reasons. Sometimes just because they're hungry. These kids today have so much going on that sometimes they need teachers to focus on them in the classs and not the numbers on paper that go downstate to some pencil pusher. Teach the kids what they're supposed to know, grade them individually, and as a teacher establish their progress. There's nothing completely wrong with testing, but it shouldn't be the basis of promotion in today's society.

Answer 2

I believe that the No Child Left Behind Act, literally leaves the kids who do not get a good score on standardized tests, will not be able to go to the next grade level. It forces teachers to focus on these tests, and not the cirriculum. Classes now become test prep instead of education based. Students learn that they have a better chance if they eliminate a couple of wrong answers, but they don't even know the right ones. It also cuts bugdets for after school programs, and hurts extra ciricculum activites. It targets the "poor schools", and hurts the children in the poor schools. I think that the Act's purpose was help children who go to next grade level not being able to read, not being able to write, or do math well. It causes the smarter kids, to miss out on educational steps to help them flourish.

Answer 3

Bad for the schools, bad for the kids, bad for the country. Now child left behind was a good concept but, in the protected class America, all it has done is bring everybody down to the lowest common denominator. My grandson, who is 13, is so happy with himself because he is in the accelerated classes at school. When I went to talk with his teachers about him I found out that the accelerated classes are just the "normal" studies; the regular classes are the dummied up ones that allow for the "no child left behind" to be implemented. Unless a kid graduates from the advanced classes they have no chance at all of being accepted into the university.

School is a privilege. Some kids are just dumb; why punish the others because of this. I'm sorry but everyone is not created equal. Lets give the kids that want to and can, a good education. You know, someone has to haul the garbage.

Answer 4

I think it makes schools focus on standardized testing more than actual curriculum. All the kids do at some schools is learn how to pass the test! It also has made some schools cut electives down or out of the picture all together.