No Child Left Behind Act?

Question

What do you think about the NCLB Act? - Is it working, why or why not? What is it doing for the average students? What is it doing for the above-average students? Do schools give the mentally impaired kids special tests so that they can get more funding? Do schools get more money if more students are in advanced classes? If so, why don't they make as much of an effort to find early geniuses as they do to find early below-average children? etc.
Thanks

Answer 1

The NCLB Act not only leaves nobody behind, it prevents people from getting ahead. I don't like it at all. It is not working. Teachers are too focused on modifying ciriculum depending on state testing to reinforce this act, so instead of learning what we should be learning, we're reviewing information we learned years ago, but need to know for this testing so that we do well, so that teachers do well, so they get a big paycheck. Who is this law really benefitting, anyway?

Answer 2

I agree with many above- NCLB is not working. It is a joke. Ask yourself this question, when was the last time something worked with no funding? That is NCLB. There is no federal funding and then if kids fail then the districts get less money. Kids that fail at a high rate are usually poor districts. (Kids have food, shelter and safety more on their mind than education.). NCLB would punish a poor district that is trying it's hardest to get scores up but the kids are concentrating on other important matters.

Real education change is needed but should be done at the State level. CA, TX & FL needs more ESL than say North Dakota or Maine. A real change in education would come with funding and taking into account that a child with Downs is not going to achieve the same as a "normal" functinging child. As for the people that think their kid will get "kicked" out because of special needs- that was already protected in the ADA (american's with disabilites act; section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973). Since 504 was passed in 1973, NCLB didn't do anything more for these students. IEPs and other special considerations (including discipline) were in place long before NCLB.

Answer 3

I'm not sure where I fall here. My daughter (kindergarten last year) was in a class with 2 students that didn't speak english. The teacher did have to spend too much time redirecting and explaining to these 2 students (one spoke spanish, the other polish). They didn't have an aide for these 2, making communication a huge issue.

On the other side, both of my children have special needs. My son is getting special ed preschool, and speech. I don't know what I would do without this school for him. It's only 2.5 hours, but I know they can't kick him out.

Schools don't go out looking for below average children. My daughter just started 1st grade, and I had a meeting with the psychologist. I wasn't waiting until the school decided that she had problems. I'm also not looking for her school to take over parenting now that she has known issues, I will be getting most things done through our insurance, or out of pocket. I only expect a few services from her school. My school district has a program for the above average students, as well as inclusion and self contained.

Like I said I'm not sure where I stand, but I'm glad to know I can get some help with my two, because of NCLB.

Answer 4

I did a research project on the NCLB Act last year and what I found was very disturbing. Certain states, I'm not naming the states but one of them included the home state of George W. Bush, was forging test scores to obtain more federal funding that would have received otherwise. Other states, such as state that is home to the gambling center of the east; Atlantic City, were denying the special education students the right to be promoted to the next grade level if these students did not receive at least a grade of "C" in all classes and these schools practiced this form of discrimination in the name of the NCLB Act. Still other states had lowered the score to pass these tests as down to as low as 40%, such as the state that is home to the Detroit Lions did. The federal government requires at least a 70% in order to pass. Many states, such as the state that is home to the Denver Broncos, lumped the partially proficent students with the proficient students to avoid sanctions. It does little to help the morale of the teachers and nothing to help the students with any kind of mental conditions. Which could help to explain why the Virginia Tech shooter had managed to go as long as he did without mental help.

However, after faxing this same research paper straight to the Secretary of Education back around the 1st of the year, I found out in April that as of the school year '08-'09, the Department of Education is going is use seperate tests to actuately measure for learning disabilities at an earlier age and to measure actuately their progress through the school year. We shall see.

School funding is based on the scores of these tests and not on how many students are in below level, average, or above average classes. As far as the average and above average students are concerned, the school system focuses more on the self esteem of the child and less on the academic level of the child. Which could also explain why many universities, such as Old Dominion University, has to teach high school level courses to many of their students before they can enter into their course of study.

I hope this answer your question.

Answer 5

As with everything else, it is aimed at improving children who are not succeeding. They only get special testing conditions if it is specified in their IEP's. Average kids are always left out of the loop. Above average kids will pass the test so they get no extra instruction through NCLB. It will be gone in 5 years or so, mark my words.

Answer 6

It is the No Child Left Behind Act not the Make Every Child Do Better Act.

The emphasis is on bring every child up to the standards for that particular state. Many have said that those who already meet standards or who are gifted and talented are being neglected.

There are no special tests for what we call Special Education Most teachers object to that because they think that it is unrealistic to expect many of these students, if properly placed to pass the same tests as others.Additional money is not available for those in advanced classes. Indeed school administrators complain that they receive insufficient funding for those who are below the minimum requirements.Many feel (I am not one among them) that gifted students can get by on less and that the poorer students need a lot of extra help particularly in reading and math.

I hope that I have answered your questions.

Answer 7

I can only speak to low performing children and special ed children.

As usual, the No Child Left Behind act is an Orwellian misnomer. Actually children can be left behind up to three years. If you fail grade three, you just keep repeating it until you get it right. You can do this up to three times.

This is horrible enough for the 12 year old in third grade, but it is absolutely cruel to children with documented disabilities. If they want to stay on the regular diploma track, they must take the standardized test. Even though they are afforded modifications to the testing environment, such as more time, many do not pass it. This is like failing a child with only one leg for not running a mile in fifteen minutes.

These tests are a disaster for children who fail repeatedly. They never feel very good about themselves for the rest of their lives.

Answer 8

It makes fourth graders responsible for property prices. People buying new houses want to see how good the schools are and of course they use these No Child Left Behind Tests as a basis to compare. So what do the schools do? They stop teaching and start test prepping REALLY early like in 2nd grade so that their school will have the highest test scores.

Answer 9

I believe it is working because it protects handicapped children. It ensures they get an education equal to that of a "normal" child and that they can't be kicked out of school for being slower than other students. NCLB also works for above average students because it ensures the school is making AYP. If the school makes AYP, then it can prove that the teaching methods are adequate. There is no such thing as "special funding." Each county is responsible for budgeting its own budget and for making the necessary accommodations appropriate for the number of special ed students they have in a given year. The schools also fund AIM programs for students who achieve at a higher level. The treatment is equal. You don't just go out and "find" geniuses. The children with a higher intellectual levels are rewarded on an individual basis. They don't keep stats on more intelligent kids simply because they don't have to prove progress. However, constant monitoring of stats is required for students who achieve at lower levels in order to adjust to meet the specific needs of each student.

Answer 10

As a teacher who last taught in the inner city in a public school, I can tell you that children are STILL being left behind all the time. When there are children, like your niece, who needs help it usually falls on the parents to fight for the rights of such children as you sil is doing. Thankfully, in your case, your sil knows what the law is in her state and is fighting for her child. Where I taught, the parents either didn't know the law or couldn't have cared less, even when we risked our jobs telling them what the law was and told them how to fight. Unfortunately, the President and his advisers, like most people, seem to think that those in administrative positions with doctorate degrees are the best sources of information and how to deal with such problems. That isn't usually the case, though. Doctors of education are in offices, reading research by other doctors and haven't been in a classroom in years. They don't really have a clue. These are the same people who blame the classroom teacher for school system failures and expect the classroom teacher to perform miracles with little or no help. The classroom teacher, who work with children day in and day out, be the one making policy and advising the President.