No Child Left Behind Act

No Child Left Behind Act when passed by Congress is stated to have been "widely hailed as a bipartisan breakthrough -- a victory for American children, particularly those traditionally underserved by public schools." (Darling-Hammond, ) While the NCLB does have some "major breakthroughs" including "flagging differences in student performance by race and class, it shines a spotlight on longstanding inequalities and could trigger attention to the needs of students neglected in many schools.

Second, by insisting that all students are entitled to qualified teachers, the law has stimulated recruitment efforts in states where low-income and "minority" students have experienced a revolving door of inexperienced, untrained teachers..." however, the agenda which is described by Darling-Hammond as 'noble' "has been nearly lost in the law's problematic details." (Darling-Hammond, 2007)

Testing

One of the primary problems with the No Child Left Behind Act is that it focuses on "testing rather than investing." (Darling-Hammond, 2007) Furthermore, the United States has been found to be "the most inequitable education system in the industrialized world." (Darling-Hammond, 2007) This is due to findings in twenty-five states which describe "...apartheid schools serving low-income students of color with crumbling facilities, overcrowded classrooms, out-of-date textbooks, no science labs, no art or music courses and a revolving door of untrained teachers, while their suburban counterparts, spending twice as much for students with fewer needs, offer expansive libraries, up-to-date labs and technology, small classes, well-qualified teachers and expert specialists, in luxurious facilities." (Darling-Hammond, 2007)

II. Inclusion of Special Education Students in General Classrooms

There has been quite a dilemma created by the inclusion requirements as set out in the No Child Left Behind Act since many of the students with disabilities are not prepared to enter the general classroom and furthermore, general education teachers have not been historically prepared to cope with the student with disabilities in the general classroom. Furthermore, schools have not been prepared for inclusion which in the beginning of implementation of the NCLB created complete and utter chaos in general education classrooms and throughout the schools as well. Inclusion for schools and educators meant a whole new set of rules by which they were to adhere in educating students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment possible.

Each student's individual situation under the terms of the NCLB act is inherently a part of and a requirement for consideration in planning the student's educational goals. This has been difficult to implement because in many cases the parents of students with disabilities either do not speak English or do not understand that they play a vital role in the education of their child and still others have difficulty taking time off from their work schedule. Furthermore, it has been experientially learned by schools and educators that the parents of students with disabilities are badly in need of education concerning their child's education and the opportunities available to these students. Just as is the case with all other students in today's school systems, these students are the focus of testing and evaluation.

III. Other Issues and Challenges

The No Child Left Behind act is viewed by many if not most of today's teachers as having tunnel vision and that acknowledges little but standardized testing outcomes. Specifically reported by Dillon (2009) in the 2009 New York Times article entitled: "No Child Law Is Not Closing a Racial Gap" that there has not been a narrowing of the gap between white and minority students in recent years..." (Dillon, 2009) Additionally stated by Dillon (2009) is that according to experts the No Child left Behind act has "failed to make serious headway in lifting academic achievement." (2009)

Zach Miners reported in the 2009 work entitled: "No Child Left Behind Law Loses Support that when the NCLB was signed by President George W. Bush in 2002, "…policy met with bipartisan praise and looked set to become the most influential federal reform of the nation's schools since desegregation in the 1950s. Today, efforts to reauthorize the law -- something that was scheduled to happen in 2007 -- continue to languish in Congress, unable to gather enough momentum from either party in either chamber. Its sinking trajectory demonstrates how difficult it can be for politicians in Washington to improve the quality of education offered in classrooms across the country." (Miners, 2009)

Summary & Conclusion