(NCLB) States get creative in minimizing law's impact

[babylonsister]

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-06-06-schools-states_N.htm

States get creative in minimizing law's impact

By Ledyard King, Gannett News Service

WASHINGTON — The federal No Child Left Behind law requires that all public school students make "adequate yearly progress" toward mastering math and reading by 2014. But each state defines such progress according to its own rules.

Some states have used those rules "to blunt the effects" of the law, said Jack Jennings, head of The Center on Education Policy, a Washington-based think tank.

But, Jennings said, "The day of reckoning ultimately comes."

One way states can postpone committing to the goals of No Child Left Behind is to make their standardized tests easy enough for most students to pass.

But there are other options as well:

•Limiting which students must show progress

In addition to boosting the performance of students overall, schools must boost the performance of "numerically significant" subgroups of minority and other students. Each state decides what numerically significant means. Maryland recognizes subgroups made up of only five students. In California, some subgroups must contain 100 students to count.

more...

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. Subgroups are 20 in my state

Thanks for posting this. NCLB is an incredibly unjust, confusing and downright nasty piece of legislation.

[babylonsister]

2. I read this in the paper and thought of you, and all the other teachers

out there who think this NCLB law is hogwash.

:hi:

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. We did a presentation on NCLB at our DFA meeting Wed. night

I was surprised at how much my active DFA members did NOT know about this stupid law.

I told them all they needed to know was that it sucks. LOL

I also did some research. Most folks don't remember that Clinton had an education bill as well. It never got far. But it was focused on IMPROVING schools, not penalizing them.

[glowing]

3. Most teachers that I have heard from, and this includes my mother

and sister, think that it is the worst legislation ever written... the idea of educating everyone well is a great idea, but this legislation ends up leaving kids behind.

[proud2BlibKansan]

5. Yes it really is that bad.