I wonder, is it because of the heat that even neutral, informative articles about NCLB are getting negative spin?
Is something rotten with No Child Left Behind?EAST BAY - Most have probably heard of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), but when it comes to understanding what it all means, many of us feel like we're the ones who've been "left behind." The actual law is around 1000 pages (There's no need for that kind of torture). We've broken it down to the bare bones.
The No Child Left Behind Act is designed to guarantee that all students are being educated. With this act, it's not enough for children to "skate by." All children are expected to be proficient by 2014. NCLB marks a major increase in the level of accountability required of schools. NCLB itself is new, as of 2001, but the idea isn't. The history goes back to the landmark Brown v. Board of Education when the Supreme Court decided that segregated schools were unconstitutional. NCLB builds on this concept of equal education by breaking children into subgroups based on ethnicity and socioeconomic factors. This makes it almost impossible for any group to fall through the cracks just because a school's overall score is high. NCLB is actually part of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. When it was time to look at ESEA again in 2001, the No Child Left Behind Act was added.
Here are the basics goals...
Etc, etc. There are parental guidelines, links, some pros and very mild cons, and a quote from one delightfully clueless parent. But one question is left unanswered - what the heck is the deal with that headline?
Posted by kswygert at August 16, 2005 04:52 PM