No Child Left Behind Act Essays (Examples)

(No Child Left behind Act Aims to Improve Success for All Students and Eliminate the Achievement Gap)

Parents will also gain knowledge regarding how the quality of learning is happening in their child's class. They will get information regarding the progress of their child vis-a-vis other children. Parents have of late been given the privilege to ask for information regarding the level of skills of the teachers. It offers parents assistance and alternatives for fulfilling the learning requirements of their children. Parents will be aware as to when their child is lagging behind and they will have fresh alternatives in case their child's school is not fulfilling their requirements. Proponents are of the opinion that schools which are unable to raise their standards must utilize their federal funds to receive children additional assistance; which may indicate shifting to a superior school in the region or paying for extra services in…

III. Other Issues and Challenges

The No Child Left ehind 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 ehind act has "failed to make serious headway in lifting academic achievement." (2009)

Zach Miners reported in the 2009 work entitled: "No Child Left ehind Law Loses Support that when the NCL was signed by President George W. ush in 2002, "…policy met with bipartisan praise and looked set to become the most influential federal reform of the nation's schools since…

These authors note that the obstacles for ELL students are particularly challenging, given that they include both educational and technical issues. These challenges include the following:

Historically low ELL performance and very slow improvement. State tests show that ELL students' academic performance is far below that of other students, oftentimes 20 to 30 percentage points lower, and usually shows little improvement across many years.

Measurement accuracy. esearch shows that the language demands of tests negatively influence accurate measurement of ELL performance. For the ELL student, tests measure both achievement and language ability.

Instability of the ELL student subgroup. The goal of redesignating high-performing ELL students as language-proficient students causes high achievers among ELL students to exit the subgroup. The consequence is downward pressure on ELL test scores, worsened by the addition of new ELL students, who are typically low achievers.

Factors outside of a school's control. esearch shows substantial nonschool…

There are over 4.4 million ELs enrolled in U.S. public schools, a number that has doubled during the last decade, making ELs roughly 10% of the total enrollment nationwide (Conrad 2005). The demographic increases demonstrate to government agencies that more needs to be done to support and ensure their integration and success in the educational process, and standardized testing in English is the least appropriate way to meet their needs (Conrad 2005). Moreover, it is not yet clear how states will define progress for students with significant cognitive disabilities related to state standards in reading, math, and science (Cooper-Duffy 2003).

Despite the stated intent of NCLB to improve outcomes for all students, particularly those who have been historically neglected, educators and others may adopt a series of "gaming" practices, which give students a special education classification to exclude them from high-stakes tests, in order to artificially inflate schools' passing rates…

In principle, it is now believed that the traditional emphasis on passive learning through lectures and textbook methods of instruction are far less effective than active methods of academic instruction. Whereas modern educators have been pushing for public education systems to move away from passive learning methods, the NCLB creates the exact opposite incentive: to waste classroom modules memorizing information for the test and practicing test-taking instead of learning (Darling-Hammond, 2004; Murray, 2006).

Similarly, modern education theorists have been suggesting that the traditional educational emphasis on reading, writing, and arithmetic are already too narrow a focus because that method neglects the needs of many students. Human intelligence represents so many different types of talents and abilities that the range of subject matter and teaching styles should be increased rather than decreased even further to accommodate the need to drill students in specific areas for the express purpose of representing their…

Review and Comment

Indications suggest that Obama will endorse a rewritten version of No Child Left ehind once requirements like teacher quality and academic standards are toughened up to focus more attention on failing schools. This will mean more, not less, federal involvement in the program. Overall, reaction to Obama's plans are negative. Most who were opposed to ush's policy had hoped for a brand new start rather than a rehash of the old bill (No child left behind act, 2009).

While this article presents a convincing argument that No Child Left ehind has fallen short of its original goals, there are those who think it has improved public education for some students, especially those with learning disabilities.

The bill forces schools to issue easy-to-interpret report cards that break down a student's progress, including those with learning disabilities. It establishes proficiency levels specifically for the disabled student in order to…

72). Therefore, the effect of the Act is this regard is positive. The same article states, "many districts, however, do not have the resources to implement them. Almost all (97%), for example, said they did not have the money to extend the school day or year" (Lewis, p. 72). The above statement provides an excellent example of the effects on local school systems by Federal mandates.

Since the act was meant to assist every student in achieving certain goals, and the Act states that every student should be afforded an equal opportunity to obtain an education, it makes sense in order to achieve these lofty goals that all children be given every tool possible to assist them in becoming better educated. Many of these tools are cost effective and valuable to the students (and the teachers) but the expense of providing them still has to be borne by someone. Since…

The issue is fairly straightforward, and it does not require special teaching theories or extensive legislation in order to be corrected. Students are being failed at a young age and throughout school by a system that is so intent on finding ways to show progress that it stops paying attention to any real measures. This problem is exacerbated by funding that is performance-dependent, as it only leads to the inflation of assessment scores. This not only helps to masks issues on a national level, but it fails countless individual students who deserve a better education than the one they are being allowed to skate by with. Reform is wonderful when it is useful, but when it is a tool for legislatures, administrators, and educational theorists to feel like they are getting things done, it becomes far more destructive than simply letting things continue unhindered would.

I am very much a…

No Child Left Behind Act

Impact of the "No Child Left Behind Act" in California Schools

The Federal "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001" which President Bush signed into law in January 2002, has been an issue of debate across the country for the last two years. Its impact on public education has varied from state to state.

According to the "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001," every state must annually test all students in grades 3 through 8 in math and reading by 2005, and in science by 2007 (http://www.greatschools.net/cgibin/showarticle/CA/205/improve).

Moreover states must "demonstrate adequate yearly progress toward learning standards for all groups of students," including the economically disadvantaged, racial and ethnic groups, disabled students such as physically or mentally challenged, and those students who are limited in the English language (http://www.greatschools.net/cgibin/showarticle/CA/205/improve).The goal of the NCLB is to achieve 100% proficiency for all students within twelve years…

No Child Left Behind Act (Public Law 107-110, 115), is a Congressional Act signed into law by George . Bush in January 2002. The Bill was a bi-partisan initiative, supported by Senator Edward Kennedy, and authorized a number of federal programs designed to improve standards for educational accountability across all States, districts, and increase the focus on reading. Much of the NCLB focus is based on the view that American students are falling behind in educational basis when scored are compared globally. Contrary to popular opinion, NCLB does not establish a national achievement standard; each State must set its own standards, but in order to receive funding, the States must meet a basic criteria of performance (Abernathy, 2007).[footnoteRef:1] [1: See: "Fact Sheet on the No Child left Behind Act," from the U.S. Department of Education, Cited in: http://www.ed.gov/nclb/overview/intro/factsheet.html; Also see: "NCLB: Conspiracy, Compliance or Creativity?" Cited in: http://www.middleweb.com/HMnclb.html.]

The national…

No Child Left Behind: Promises and Practical Realities

The Background of No Child Left Behind year before "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) became the law of the land, President George . Bush set the tone for the emerging legislation, saying it would be "the cornerstone of my Administration." He also stated that "too many of our neediest children are being left behind." And when Bush signed NCLB into law on January 8, 2002, he had seemingly achieved strong bipartisan support for a major overhaul of how teachers and schools are to be held accountable for the successes or failures they demonstrate in their efforts to educate children. Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy, a long-time strong education advocate, was invited to participate in the ceremony, and to be photographed with Bush at the signing. There was much fanfare, posturing, polemics and press coverage. However, two years after Bush had called NCLB "the…

No Child Left Behind Act of 2001

Key political, or legal issues, changes in K-12 assessment goals

A Statute of instructive practice within the K-12 cluster involves instruction, curriculum and assessment among students. In this case, alignment ensures that the three capacities coordinated with the same goal and strengthened instead of working at cross-purposes. An appraisal will also measure the success of what the students are being taught on whether their educational needs students are satisfied (Olivert, 2007). Assuming that any of the capacities is not synchronized, it will disturb the balance and skew the process of education. The results of the assessment will be deceiving or instruction will be insufficient. Alignment is troublesome to realize in some cases. Frequently, a focal hypothesis about the nature of learning and knowing around which of the three capacities have been coordinated is required.

Most recent methodologies to educational assessment, instruction and curriculum…

Negatives in No Child Left Behind (NCLB)

hat's wrong with the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation that President George . Bush and key members of the U.S. Congress put together in such a cooperative spirit in 2001? The NCLB was signed into law (in January, 2002) with such fanfare that teachers, parents, students and school boards nationwide had high hopes for a revolution in the way teachers teach and students learn. But something has gone wrong -- in fact many things about NCLB just haven't panned out the way they were supposed to. The NCLB era is simply not what it was cracked up to be, and this paper reviews and critiques the reasons why, and the specific points of contention vis-a-vis NCLB's weaknesses and flaws. The Obama Administration has pledged to revise NCLB, but there are many legislative and political challenges facing the administration's plans, and as of…

Educational Policy and ELLs
In 2015, President Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which re-affirmed the civil rights law obligated schools to ensure that ELLs have equal access to education (NCELA, 2016; Colorin Colorado, 2017). The same concept underlining this Act was previously found in the No Child Left Behind policy. The effect that this policy has had on the education of is that it has helped to ensure that ELLs receive fair treatment in schools and receive the help they require.
Because ELLs come from a foreign environment and culture, they are more likely to require special assistance when it comes to acquiring the L2. Their familiarity with the new surroundings and the manner of expressions is less than a learner who has been raised in the native environment.
Some specific ways that the policy has helped ELLs is that it has taken into consideration that situation…

oreover, the legislation contains loopholes that exempt some states from complying in some ways and it allows for some practices that distort the test results in some situations. These loopholes and exceptions are themselves impediments to any good science that might come from the testing regimes required (cDermott & Jensen, 2005).

The authors of "Dubious Sovereignty" describe yet another of NCLB's contradictions. The proponents of the law say it protects individual students rights by enforcing a uniform standard for a high quality education across the country. However, the legislation allows the individual states to set up their own standards and create their own tests, and therefore there is not a true uniform standard nationwide (cDermott & Jensen, 2005).

Camille . ayers's article "Public Law 107-110 No Child Left Behind Act of 2001: Support or Threat to Education as a Fundamental Right?" examines how the law impacts the populations it was…

No Child Left Behind and Black Males

No child left behind

No Child Left Behind: Cause and Effect Essay

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) was passed in 2001 in order to improve overall students' performance and to decrease the performance gap between minority and mainstream students. However other effects have emerged since its implementation. Through this cause and effect essay, author sheds light on effects of the NCLB. It has been discussed, how the NCLB has helped to improve education levels as well as how school administrators are facing challenges to meet the standards of this act.

The Influence of No Child Left Behind on Black Male Graduate ate

The Influence of No Child Left Behind on Black Male Graduate ate

Essay

NCLB is an educational policy that emphasizes accountability by imposing constraints on school systems. According to Gay (2007),

"The achievement gaps persist among different ethnic group,…

The renewal of emphasis on properly trained and equipped teachers and the dangling carrot of greater funds to achieve such an aim is surely enticing for any student interested in academic success. And yet the broad focus on test results, though perhaps inevitable and the sole method of any objective monitoring, promises to result in better trained teachers handcuffed by state mandated lesson plans. These state mandated lesson plans are in turn narrowly tailored to achieve impersonal federal academic goals not best suited for each student.

Personal Perspective:

rom a personal perspective, it appears clear that the system has not been improved all that much. While the total amount of money being spent on the program might be impressive, each individual school will not receive enough to make any difference in their ability to be more discriminate with teacher hires and/or teacher training. The strict focus on achieving certain numbers…

State education agencies and local school districts needs to work to incorporate the major provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act (U.S. Department of Education, 2004a). The evaluator feels it is imperative that as teacher preparation programs, along with state and local education agencies, address the training, recruitment, and retention of highly qualified teachers and conduct counseling sessions for every American classroom.

Teacher education programs can prepare future teachers to work in true collaborative arrangements with a variety of community stakeholders and families by helping teachers and school administrators understand the mandates, timelines, and overall missions of other public human services agencies. This type of information is critical and could be easily incorporated into the general and special education teacher preparation curricula, including field experiences in schools as well as in community human service agencies (such as mental health centers or juvenile justice).

As more educators are trained and…

Many states don't want to lower their standards, including Minnesota, New Hampshire and Hawaii, and legislators have seriously debated withdrawing from NCLB, even though it would mean they would lose federal money that is tied to it. However, as the first national suit points out, no funding except the promised NCLB funding is supposed to be tied to it; the Education Department has apparently been making its own interpretation in that regard, however, and denying funding improperly (Schrag 2004, 38+).

A change in plaintiff

Lawsuits concerning educational issues are not new; what is new is that it is not parents suing school districts for failing to educate their children (ashington Times 2002, A01). Some of those suits are without merit and are dismissed, such as one by an Ohio student and her mother who sued a school district and 11 teachers for $6 million because the school's grading practices "punished…

First, the research will present the problem and then the potential solution to the problem. The research will examine the merits of the potential solutions and their likely impact on both teachers and students. The research will examine the most viable solution including its definition, implementation, advantages, disadvantages and call to action.

eader/Audiences

The intended audience for this research paper is public school teachers. A secondary audience will consist of school administrators, those responsible for adopting public policy and parents of school age children.

Methods

This research will use a quantitative research method that involves the administration of a survey to elementary school teachers of grades K-6. The research method will examine the key issues as indicated by a literature review. Key issues to be included in the survey are the perceived stress on teachers as they strive to teach to the test (Ottalini, 2008), how teaching to the test…

One of the most damaging results of the NCLB program was the way that many schools began focusing on standardized test preparation through drilling instead of on substantive academic subjects (Sonnenblick, 2008). In many states, educators began devoting inappropriate amounts of time to preparing students to perform well on the state-wide tests while neglecting their primary academic purpose of teaching. Unfortunately, the increased attention to reading, writing, and arithmetic necessarily reduced the amount of time available for other subjects; it also increased reliance on passive learning, rote memorization, and testing mechanics (Sonnenblick, 2008).

Meanwhile, the weight of contemporary educational research suggests that the exact opposite approach to education is what is necessary to increase student interest and achievement in school. Namely, the key to improving modern education lies in expanding the range of subject matter and the spectrum of human cognitive intelligence beyond the traditional narrow focus on linguistic intelligence…

No Child Left Behind Law

On January 8, 2002 President George . Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act of2001 (NCLB Act). This historic piece of education legislation reauthorized and considerably expanded the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, first endorse in1965. Its most important title, Title I, has focused federal government attention and money on students in high poverty schools for over 35 years. Congress made noteworthy changes to the law in 1994, and the most recent changes build upon them dramatically. It also provided momentous funding increases. The new Act is the result of bipartisan leadership among five political leaders -- President Bush, Senators Kennedy and Gregg and Representatives Boehner and Miller -- and a large majority of the U.S. Congress who were clearly fed up with insufficient learning among the groups of students that federal programs are most supposed to help.(Dickard, 2001)

hile a determined band of…

No Child Left Behind Act

Analysis of articles that focus on the impact of "No Child Left Behind Act" on key stakeholders of education in the United States.

January 8, 2002 was the date the No Child Left Behind Act was signed into law by President Bush; this bill reauthorized ESEA, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which was the fundamental federal law for grades one through twelve. ESEA, which includes Title 1, the United States government program for the aid of students considered 'disadvantaged', dates to 1965 and subsequent reenactment in 1994. At the time the NCLB act was signed there was considerable national concern about public education; this bill established new requirements for all public schools, expanding the government's educational role with a focus on underprivileged students.

Within NCLB, new measures held both schools and states to higher levels of responsibility for educational progress and the law included…

e. ELL students in public schools. Data provided in the literature demonstrates that by 2030, more than half of all students in American public schools will speak a language other than English (Devoe, 35). In some schools the total number of students whose first language is not English is much higher. Specifically, Devoe reports that in Lawrence, Massachusetts more than 90% of all children enrolled in public schools are ELLs. Devoe argues that in these districts, a catch-22 has developed which makes it difficult for schools to provide educational services to ELLs. Specifically, ELL students that do not pass reading and math competence tests are labeled as "in need of improvement." Although efforts have been made to improve outcomes for these students, basic English competency remains a significant challenge limiting the progress of the students and the school on standardized tests. As ELL students fail to meet standards, schools that…

No Child Left Behind

The law which is known as No Child Left Behind, or NCLB, was created to help students in the United States. hen the law was written, it was intended that schools would be held to a high standard. Students would each have specific standards based on their grade which would better ensure that all American children have more equal education (Noll 2012,-page 402). The intent is also to make sure teachers are highly skilled and putting the greatest amount of effort into their work. New technologies are incorporated into the classroom and used to enhance the learning experience and funding is increased or decreased based on the level of the school's success on exams overall. It is designed to hold schools accountable for the education that they provide to their students; it is good-intentioned. This sounds like a wonderful idea; however, the NCLB law is highly…

For Bush, the "formation and refining of policy proposals" (Kingdon's second process stream in policymaking) came to fruition when he got elected, and began talking to legislators about making educators and schools accountable. Bush gave a little, and pushed a little, and the Congress make its own changes and revisions, and the policy began to take shape. The third part of Kingdon's process stream for Bush (politics) was getting the necessary votes; Bush had his handlers buttonhole certain conservative politicians, and united them with Democrats, to get enough votes to pass the NCLB.

Meantime, it was truly "organized anarchy" as the debate in the House and Senate lasted seven weeks, and some members of Congress rejected the idea of having the NAEP double check state statistics that show whether test scores have gone up or not. Civil rights groups attacked the bill, saying it would be unfair to minorities.

There…

Growth models are more reliable in NCLB research because: a) status models depend on data that is "vertically scaled" (measuring from one grade to the next); b) status models can be linked to "individual students or schools over time"; and c) status models sometimes employ "hierarchical linear modeling" -- a more sophisticated and potentially esoteric technique (Azin, p. 74). Meanwhile, growth models are more effective in evaluating the success of students and schools under NCLB because they take into account "gain scores" (which are calculated by examining the difference from the starting point to the end point) (Azin, p. 74). Further, the multilevel growth model for evaluation measures both student growth and group-level growth, offering researchers and educators an opportunity to factor in teaching quality and school quality.

Conclusion: There have been many valid criticisms of NCLB, ranging from a dearth of full funding to the fact that many teachers…

What works for one child is not necessarily going to work for the next. So how can one promote the use of standardized tests as the only way to measure educational learning and success? The premise of the No Child Left Behind Act is very honorable. Each child should be taught by the best teachers that there are and each school should be held accountable for making sure that this occurs. But the measuring device that this act relies on is faulty. It places so much emphasis on the scores of the tests that all of the other educational ideas are being lost among the numbers.

eferences

Beveridge, Tina. (2010). No Child Left Behind and Fine Arts Classes. Arts Education Policy

eview. 111(1), p4-7.

Caillier, James. (2010). Paying Teachers According to Student Achievement: Questions

egarding Pay-for-Performance Models in Public Education. Clearing House. 83(2),

p58-61.

Derthick, Martha and Dunn, Joshua M.…

It has already been noted that schools have had to trim down on the subjects that are being taught, and the depths to which certain subjects are taught, and this ha of course had a direct effect on teachers' ability to both direct their own teaching and serve what many feel is the true purpose of their work as teachers -- providing true cultural knowledge and critical thinking rather than simply fundamentals. Though change was definitely needed, the No Child Left Behind Act was not the right change according to many teachers.

Schools that were already strapped for funds were the hardest hit by the new regulations and standards for federal funds, as they had fewer resources with which to achieve the standards being set by the No Child Left Behind Act and to provide the individual attention that the legislation required from each student as part of the school's…

Policy Initiative/No Child Left Behind (NCLB)

This paper will examine the NCLB (No Child Left Behind) policy initiative.

The Policy

On 8th May, 2002, George W. Bush signed the NCLB Act into law. The Act represents the 1965 ESEA's (Elementary and Secondary Education Act's) most extensive reform ever. The federal government's role in kindergarten to secondary school education has been redefined through the Act, which is expected to help forge the achievement divide between minority and disadvantaged pupils and their fellow pupils. A nationwide Act such as the NCLB guides state standard development (Case Assignment Module ). These represent a form of course benchmarks, having a significant influence on course planning and development. This title's aim is ensuring every child has an equal, significant, and fair chance at obtaining superior quality education as well as (at least) reaching proficiency on difficult state-level academic tests and achievement benchmarks (Title I -…

he belief that the achievement of students in the United States schools was falling behind other countries led politicians in the 1970s to instigate a minimum competency testing movement to reform our schools. States began to rely on tests of basic skills to ensure, in theory, that all students would learn at least the minimum needed to be a productive citizen (Amrein & Berliner).

In 1983, the National Commission of Education released a Nation at Risk, the most influential report on education in the past several decades. A Nation at Risk called for an end to the minimum. he competency testing movement and the beginning of the high-stakes testing movement that would raise the nation's standards of achievement drastically. his was a direct result of the perception that America was falling behind other nations in the education of their youth.

In discussing current high-stakes testing practices, test scores were often…

No Child Left Behind Initiative

The following will be a critique of No Child Left Behind with regards to technology integration.

The dream in most schools to have a technology program has remained unfulfilled. This is because their teachers have neither the skill nor the time to effectively incorporate technology in class. There are also limited resources for media experts to create conducive environment for students to learn. Another problem is that administrators cannot come up with a strategy that is cohesive, due to lack of technical wherewithal. Moreover, most of the educators have this misconception that the type of technology does not matter; they are all good. Therefore, technological innovations may in some occasions act as obstacles, both of and in themselves. For instance, in a case where a media expert starts to recklessly bring in different kinds of digital tools, such as hardware and software; and does not…

Those benchmarks include making sure teachers are able to "employ multiple measures of measuring student growth and understanding" (NBPTS). Moreover, a teacher needs to be able to "clearly explain student performance to parents" (NBPTS). hat this means is that teachers must be mandated to complete "rigorous self-reflection exercises" that are designed specifically to demonstrate the teacher's effectiveness (p. 60). Caillier points to a study which showed that teachers with NBPTS certifications were more effective in raising student outcomes -- and though he doesn't spell out what study that was, he believes schools should use models like the NBPTS model to identify effective teachers.

If Caillier is right, these models could work well. But he cautions that while private sector employees are more motivated by money and status, public school teachers "are more motivated by work-related conditions than money." Hence, if money is being offered as a motivating factor for teachers…

1945

Education is now becoming a very prominent and contentious aspect of American society. As globalization continues to take shape, competitive pressures require a more educated workforce. The American economy in particular is changing from a product-oriented society to one predicated on service. Services rely on intellectual capital that must be cultivated through years of experience and education. In order for America to maintain its economic and political leadership throughout the world, education is paramount. To properly address this issue, the "No Child Left Behind," and "Special Education Act" were created.

The policy issue that NCLB hopes to address is that of large gap between American students and those of other developed nations from Pre-K to 12th grade. We have the best universities in the world but our public education is lacking. I would wish to enhance the overall standards of assessment to ensure that all students have a strong…

The Act also has the chance to widen, not lessen, the gap between rich and poor. Poorly funded schools will have fewer tools with which to reach and teach all students. Well-funded schools will have access to the best materials, technologies, and teachers. Students attending poorly funded schools are, in my opinion, being penalized for circumstances beyond their control. No Child Left Behind is leaving many of our most talented students behind. Neill (2003) echoes my sentiments, claiming "NCLB is a fundamentally punitive law that uses flawed standardized tests to label schools as failures and punish them with counterproductive sanctions." Ironically, the official Department of Education Web site seems stuck in its own circular reasoning. The Department of Education offers no clear solutions for how to improve "consistently low-performing schools," but points out that many children are "trapped" in them.

As they mature, students left behind at an early age…

For the at-risk students that NCLB was supposed to help, this could actually make their educational situation much worse.

As a consequence, the National Education Association has proposed a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in 2007 as an alternative to the rigid, punitive, and unscientific methods of NCLB (ESEA, 2006; Crawford, 2004). While the ESEA summary does include some of the same elements that are present in NCLB -- such as accountability standards -- it does so without the agreed upon flaws of the current law. The overarching purpose of the ESEA is to ensure that all necessary resources are available for educators, that the achievement gap can be closed quickly, that students leave schools with the skills the 21st century demands, and that educators and students will have more enthusiasm for the educational process (ESEA, 2006). These goals ask a lot of a single piece of…

If minorities are to ever be given equal
footing in the race to influence, political representation and economic
balance, they must first be given fair recognition within America's
educational system.
In order for educators to achieve this necessary level of integration,
however, the emphases which are part and parcel of No Child Left Behind
must simply be repealed. As it comports with most other aspects of the
Bush Administration which is several months from exiting office, No Child
Left Behind should be considered a failed policy by a failed presidency.
As in so many areas of civic importance over the last eight years, our
schools have seen a dramatic declination in quality and accountability.
The resolutions which impose greater uniformity in an area where
theoretical presumption states greater need for individual attention are
both regressive and discomfited with the current demands of a floundering
American educational system. This would be…

Chorzempa believes that two courses in literacy, the minimum for many teacher education programs, is insufficient preparation to teach the six modes of language arts. She encourages teachers to build a strong literacy base by enrolling in supplementary courses and joining professional organizations such as the International eading Association and the National Writing Project. She also stresses the importance of building a positive classroom environment, which she calls "essential for developing a community of learners in which students show respect and support for one another" (Chorzempa, p. 74). Once again, she suggests additional coursework. She also cites professional journals, websites, and online teacher chat forums as resources for teachers seeking to enhance their classroom management skills.

University-school partnerships are a means to work collaboratively and link pedagogy and practice. Chorzempa believes there are benefits to all participants in these learning experiences, including students, in-service and pre-service teachers, and teacher educators.…

No Child Left Behind Act

Both the No Child Left Behind Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) are fairly controversial pieces of legislation, particularly in the varying realms of public education that they affect. The former of these acts mandates that public schools must give yearly, standardized assessments of their students. The results of these assessments is largely the basis for federal funding to these schools. IDEA mandates assessments for students with learning differences and calls for the issuance of alternative assessments for those students who cannot complete the standardized assessments (Towles-eeves et al., 2009, p. 233). The problem is that critics of these pieces of legislation have alleged that all they do is shift the emphasis of education on testing and subsequent funding, rather than on comprehensive education.

Problem Statement

There are actually several different ways in which these two pieces of legislation are negatively impacting…

Della-Piana's 2008 article "Enduring issues in educational assessment" the "key recommendations" in the report Nation at Risk called for standardized tests to measure "minimum competency" "at major transition points" to "certify the student's credentials; identify the need for remedial intervention, and identify the opportunity for advanced or accelerated work" (Della-Piana 2008). However, even for this early report, construct validity -- namely the question if the tests that 'raised the alarm' regarding student underperformance were valid -- was an issue. Tests that measure outcomes alone may not fully test necessary learning skills, like the ability to reason mathematically. But open-ended questions can be highly subjective in terms of grading. These were some of the problems critics had with the tests used in the report Nation at Risk and continue to plague many NCLB tests in states all over the union.

For example, an essay written by a student can be eloquent,…

Vinoba Vhabe

Vinoba Bhave

Throughout his life, Mahatma Gandhi gave emphasis to the notion that his twin principles of truth and nonviolence must be put in practice in every aspect of life as they have the strength to solve a number of human problems. His teachings were being practiced by his faithful disciples after achieving the political independence. The most prominent person in this regard is the leader and the spiritual heir of Gandhi, Vinoba Bhave (Bary, Hay, Weiler & Yarrow, 1958).

Vinoba Bhave is, thus, one of those great devout reformers of modern India whose selfless services have inspired the hearts of innumerable countrymen. At a very early age, Vinoba was determined to undertake a lifetime celibacy & selfless service to the needy. He was in search of a life in which he could synthesize both spirituality and practicality. When he discovered Gandhi, both of them worked for the…

NCLB

A Great Idea Gone Astray

No one who cares about the future of our nation can dispute that education is important. And no one should dispute the fact that each child has as a birthright a good education that will allow each child to find a path through life that is meaningful and productive. But how to provide, implement, sustain, and assess such an educational system has proven to be extremely difficult. In part, of course, this difficulty arises from the fact that different individuals, communities, and generations have often very different ideas about what constitutes a sound education. Should public schools seek to educate citizens or train workers? Instill creativity or a work ethic? Urge conformity or individuality? And, even when schools and their stakeholders can determine exactly what it is that they are trying to do, how are they going to be able to assess whether or…

Impact on Equity

One major point regarding equity as applied to performance-based assessment is made by Yale Professor Emeritus Edmund Gordon (Dietel, Herman and Knuth, 1991). "We begin with the conviction that it is desirable that attention be given to questions of equity early in the development of an assessment process rather than as an add-on near the end of such work....The task then is to find assessment probes (test items) which measure the same criterion from contexts and perspectives which reflect the life space and values of the learner."

According to obert Linn (Dietel, Herman and Knuth, 1991), "The criterion of equity needs to be applied to any assessment. It is a mistake to assume that shifting from standardized tests to performance-based assessments will eliminate concerns about biases against racial/ethnic minorities or that such a shift will necessarily lead to equality of performance. Although many at-risk students come to…

S. is a worthwhile goal, but the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 is a poorly conceived approach whose deficiencies may actually do more to undermine many aspects of education than any meaningful improvement inspired by its programs.

eferences

Caillier, J. (2007) No Child Left Behind Act: Are States on Target to Make Their

Goals?; Journal of Negro Education, Fall 2007 Issue. etrieved September 8, 2008, at http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3626/is_200710/ai_n25139930/pg_10

Crawford, J. (2004) No Child Left Behind: Misguided Approach to School Accountability for English Language Learners. National Association for Bilingual Education. etrieved September 8, 2008, at http://www.nabe.org/documents/policy_legislation/NABE_on_NCLB.pdf

Darling-Hammond, L. (2004) NCLB Implementation Challenges: The Local Superintendent's View; Peabody Journal of Education, 80, 156-169.

Forgary, . (1997) Brain Compatible Classrooms. Andover, MA: Skylight Publishing.

Hendrie, C. (2002) Taking a Chance on Choice; Education Week, Oct 23, 2002. etrieved September 8, 2008, from www.edweek.org/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=08choice.h22

Murray, C. (2006) Acid Tests: No Child Left Behind…

Officials in border states see the matter as far more than a scholarly legal debate. Pam Slater, a San Diego County supervisor, called the current system "a travesty" that is bankrupting state and local governments. Educating 355,000 citizen-children of illegal aliens cost California taxpayers $1.7 billion in fiscal 1995-96, for example.

An offer of financial support to children born in the United States is far too great a lure," she said. "This loophole must be closed (p. 5)."

Educating illegal immigrants' children is reflected in the test scores of the border state public schools, and other school systems with a large population of illegal immigrants. While federal and state law prohibits the collecting of information that would specifically target Hispanic children as the problem behind low test scores, one might conclude that for some school districts the language barrier might contribute to those low test scores.

However, while we cannot…

Homeschooling Quality of Education

The Need for and the Purpose of the Project

The Subproblems

Definitions and Abbreviations of Terms

Books

Methodology for investigating problems identified as subproblems

Note on the Anti-Homeschooling Debate

Specific data by subproblem

Conclusion by subproblem

Subproblem one

Subproblem two

Subproblem three

Sources Cited

Growth in Homeschooling, 1978-1999

NCES Reasons for Homeschooling

The Need for and the Purpose of the Project

Homeschooling is providing a child's main educational program at home. (ebster) Homeschooling takes the place of full-time school attendance, whether at public or private schools, and should meet all the state requirements for each grade and for graduation from high school and the interim graduations, such as middle-school and so on.

Homeschooling is not a new idea, but rather one that has returned to the forefront of educational discussion in the past generation.

Until public education became widely available in the United States during the…

Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) of 2004 and the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 (NCLB) "require that students with disabilities have equal access to general education curricula and contexts," (Simon & Black, 2011, p.160). These two laws provide the fundamental backbone of inclusive education. However, educators need support in order to comply with these two federal regulations. The Differentiated Accountability Program (DAP) serves that function. As a federal program, DAP is "designed to support educators in meeting IDEA and NCLB requirements," regardless of state differentiation (Simon & Black, 2011, p. 160). DAP is, however, "designed to afford states flexibility in aligning improvement efforts with individual schools' specific needs according to each school's AYP status, requires schools in needs improvement status (SINI)," (Simon & Black, 2011, p. 160). Specific components of DAP may include professional development programs designed to help educators upgrade their skills related to teaching…

No Child Left Behind your purchase.'

No Child Left Behind

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act was officially passed in 2001 and was introduced into education shortly after. This act worked to introduce standards-based educational reform of elementary and secondary education. One of the main components of the act was a push towards mandated standardized testing as a means for rating achievements and holding educators accountable for their performances. hile the reform was supposed to improve the quality of education that children receive during their development, the actual results of these measures are heavily disputed.

There are many countries in which their education systems do not place a lot of faith in standardized testing; or use them at all in some cases. Furthermore, some I of these countries, are some of the top school systems in the world. Thus, after about a decade of mixed results from No Child…

Young Diverse Children Living in ig Cities

This paper will focus on the lives and challenges minority and culturally diverse youths face growing up in major urban city environments, such as Newark, New York, altimore or Seattle. The advent of major metropolitan areas has stimulated a rapidly increasing population of disadvantaged and volatile youths. In today's America, it seems that more and more young people growing up in major cities are subjected to poor socio-economic conditions, which anymore lead to an increased likelihood for violence and life disruption.

Today's youths growing up in major urban cities are often disadvantaged; they lack the self-esteem, confidence and tools necessary to succeed in their later adulthood. I hope through my research to uncover facts related to urban distress among youths. I hope to also explore community organizations that have focused their efforts on improving the conditions prevalent among urban youths. I propose that…

No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) was signed into law by President Bush in 2002 as a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) that was enacted in 1965 and re-enacted in 1994. The Elementary and Secondary Act also encompasses Title I, which is significant as it provides additional support for students who are disadvantaged, a factor that is often prominent in discussion of overall student performance in the United States. The nation has given considerable attention to ESEA as it has established more stringent and ambitious standards on public school, professional educators, and the students who attend public schools in the United States. Moreover, the role of the government has been expended through the act to ensure that underprivileged children receive equitable educational opportunities.

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act was intended to improve student achievement and applied a four-pronged approach to the ensuring educational progress…

Democratic Education

Question No.

What are the principles of democratic education? How are these principles and values in tension/contradiction with our social construction of children and youth? For example, what assumptions do we make about teaching, learning and youth that democratic schools challenge? How does "one size fits all" centralized curriculum contribute to what Apple called the "de-skilling of teachers"? What is lost when this approach is adapted, especially when it is combined with the "intensification" of teaching? Explore the contradictions between what we say we want our students to be when they are finished their schooling (engaged, critical thinkers, active contributors and problem solvers) and how we are often educating young people. How does democratic education address this? What are some of the challenges educators who want to introduce democratic principles into their schools face? What are some of the potential rewards? How does democratic education address the notion…

No Child Left ehind

Letter of Transmittal

Impact of NCL on Maryland School Systems

Request for specified action

Federal and State Restructuring Options

Maryland State School Improvement Grant udget Application,

Allowable and Non-Allowable Expenditures

No Child Left ehind (NCL) is the re-embodiment of President Lyndon Johnson's Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). The primary purpose was to raise the standard of education and bridge educational boundaries. NEA certainly supports these aims and works solely in order to provide children equally standardized public schools.

The paper discuses impact of NCL on Maryland schools and what effect the state takeover had on the schools present in the district. Several recommendations and strategies are discussed in order to improve the management of the schools and a detailed request to Mr. Delaney has also been made in the paper to further improve and implement the strategies for the improvement of the schools.…

Fifth, the NCLB is devoid of any meaningful consequences for failing to achieve federal objectives other than the publication of such failures in conjunction with the rights of parents to request transfers of their children to better-performing academic institutions (Darling-Hammond 2004). Critics have suggested that the most likely result of enforcement of such limited consequences for noncompliance is the overcrowding of institutions who fulfill the federal requirements to their detriment by virtue of diminution in their ability to meet the educational needs of increased enrollment of low-achieving students (Sonnenblick 2008). Likewise, the NCLB Act authorizes increased federal funding of home schooling and for-profit institutions that further reduces necessary funds to public institutions.

Sixth, whereas George H. Bush articulated the connection between adequate nutrition and access to healthcare and preparedness to learn in school, the NCLB Act ignores this element entirely. Many critics and career educators believe that any proposed educational…

The testing process for NCLB has come under fire from some districts, and the desperation the principal feels is clear in her memo. The school district where she is employed said the memo was uncalled for, and that her high school did indeed have a high enough percentage of graduates, so it would not face a loss of funds. The principal may be disciplined because of her memo. While it may not have been necessary, it clearly points out the crisis that many school districts feel they are facing.

The states in many cases are the losers and the Act must be modified or altered somehow to realize that all school districts and all children are not created equal, and so there is no way they can possibly adhere to standards that do not allow for flexibility or unforeseen issues. Unfortunately, Connecticut has tried to appeal to the government for…

Those who continue to trend lower in their results must engage in a number of actions to include:

Offering free tutoring and additional services to struggling students in the third year.

Changing the staff, curriculum, the administration and introducing other sweeping reforms during year four.

Turing the facility into a charter school, having the state takeover or hiring a private company to run the institution in the fifth year.

These different elements are showing how the No Child Left Behind Act is focusing on using testing and market forces to deal with the problems inside the education system. ("No Child Left Behind Act," 2004)

Analyze and discuss how the No Child Left Behind Act provides illustration of the connection between ideology and educational philosophy

The market-based ideology is working in conjunction with the No Child Left Behind Act. The way that this is occurring is through having measurable standards (which…

Education is one of the critical aspects in the society especially in the case of the United States. The success of education relates to the ability of the relevant authority to adopt and integrate effective and efficient educational policy with the aim of addressing goals and targets in relation to elements of the society such as economy, politics, and social spheres. One of the critical federal educational policies is the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). This is the most recent iteration in relation to the context of Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). It reflects one of the major federal laws essential in facilitating federal spending on relevant programs with the aim of supporting K-12 schooling. NCLB educational policy should focus on integration of new qualification standards for teachers, concentrate on the improvement of schools, as well as include higher-thinking and problem-solving skills.

Summary of…

Superintendents must deal with student populations that change yearly as school choice options alter. These alterations will influence schools that have to present school choice, and schools that do not get Title 1 funds. The child who uses school choice does not have to attend another Title 1 school. They may decide to go to a school that does not get Title 1 funding (Whitney, 2011).

Evaluation of the Effect and Effectiveness of NCLB

Holding schools and school districts responsible for the level of education that they supply is the chief principle of the No Child Left Behind Act. The key to the Act's approach is the make use of measurement tools like standardized tests to be given on a regular schedule, the utilization of benchmarks, and a scheme of encouragements and punishments linked to the generation of higher test scores. On some accounts, the outcomes of this law have…

hen a president of the United States begins incorporating religious rhetoric into his speeches, alarm bells must sound. hen that same president allocates taxpayer monies to religious groups, then citizens should be experiencing widespread panic.

Bush's No Child Left Behind Act is no less frightening than the faith-based initiative. Hiding behind good intentions, the No Child Left Behind Act fails to take into account a major factor: reality. Jim Donlevy notes, "It simply is not reasonable to continue to identify thousands of failing schools throughout the United States and then to see through to completion the sanctions written into the Act." The Act includes provisions for annual testing for schools, with progress requirements in core subjects such as English, math and science. "The idea is to be sure that all students are learning at higher standards," (Donlevy). However, the Act demands too much too soon. Forcing some schools to shut…

Dissatisfaction with elementary school teachers and the educational environment usually meant that the same parents remained dissatisfied with the high school teachers and high school environment. he researcher suggests that the research gathered in the current study be used to improve community relations and more importantly, to improve the one-on-one relationships between all public school professionals and all parents. he author also notes that elementary school education provides a strong foundation for student math and literacy competency. hose competencies will carry over into middle and high school. herefore, African-American students who did not receive an adequate early childhood education are less likely to thrive in later grades.

African-American parents varied with regard to the factors that influence their perceptions about public schools and their staff. Course materials and caliber of homework was one factor that impacted African-American parent perspectives. Some parents, however, attributed their children's success or failure to personal…

hile some suggest that high-stakes testing is an inadequate way of measuring the academic achievement and learning of most students, many also agree that high-stakes testing has severe disadvantages for special education students. Kymes points out that high-stakes testing may be a discriminatory assessment method for special needs students, placing an "unfair burden" on these students. The scholar argues that testing plans cannot be created for each and every student, and even when they can, these testing plans are not always put into practice (Kymes). In addition, Ralabate notes the importance of finding alternate testing methods that allow students with disabilities to perform to their highest ability.

Determining that high-stakes testing is not a correct method of assessment for special needs students, however, is just half of the task at hand. In fact, significant information exists to argue that students with disabilities, in addition to schools, can be seriously harmed…