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The No Child Left Behind Act that President Bush put into effect has been under constant controversy and scrutiny since it was passed in 2002. Many feel that the Act is worthless, and not helping the children of America at all. The Act was recently reviewed, and those speaking in favor of the Act, found themselves on the defensive, as many upset parties spoke about the troubles and failures of the Act.
Many teachers feel pressured to pass students who do not qualify for a passing grade, in order to keep their jobs, as well as receive bonuses. Many against the Act feel as though students are taking too much time out of their normal curriculum, to study, prepare for, and take the standardized tests. Students are being put under enormous pressure to do well in school, and well on these tests, in order to keep their schools open. If a school fails to meet the standardized benchmark scores, it can be shutdown, but then of course, the questions arises, where will all the students then go to school? As well as how are they to get there? In a quote from an article written by Renee Koury, of the Mercury Times, Dean of Stanford University states:
…the law needs “a complete overhaul.” She said the law neglects to offer ways to fix or replace failing schools, or improve teacher performance.
“You can shut down a school that isn’t doing well, but then where are these kids going to go?” she said. “You can get rid of all the teachers, but it’s not like you have a lot of great teachers lining up to take their place.” She said a more apt name for the federal act might be “No Child Left Untested.”
The article, by Renee Koury, touches on both the positive, as well as the negative sides of the No Child Left behind Act, and although there are many good arguments on both sides of the arguments, almost all do agree that the Act is only a first step, and really does need an overhaul, in order to help the education system to it’s fullest potential.
Those looking to read the rest of the article written by Renee Koury can click on the link here, which will take you to her full article on the No Child Left Behind Act Review, on the Mercury News site.
