No Child Left Behind debate begins again

No Child Left Behind, which critics say has amounted to an unfunded mandate of least $40 billion, depleting local governments of budget money, is about to expire.  Bush wants it renewed with changes.  Democrats and some Republicans might prevent that from happening:

The bill would remain in effect even if it is not renewed, but theadministration is seeking changes to it, and some opponents would liketo see it thoroughly revamped. If Congress reauthorizes the bill withits basic components intact, it would be a welcome, and rare,legislative victory for Mr. Bush on Capitol Hill, one that could helpcement his legacy in education policy, an issue he has cared aboutsince he was governor of Texas.

The president wants a bill by theend of the year, but administration officials do not sound entirelyconfident. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings said after the RoseGarden ceremony that she was “cautiously optimistic.”

At leastone of the civil rights leaders in attendance, Wade Henderson, said hefeared that the reauthorization effort could collapse amid challengesfrom Republicans, in much the same way that the president’s immigration proposal was brought down by his own party. Mr. Henderson, president ofthe Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, said Mr. Bush seemeddetermined to see the bill through.

All too often, supporters of No Child left Behind accuse critics of not wanting high education standards, even though that is quite the contrary.

The question is not whether standards are important, the question is what standards are important, and how should tests shape a school's curriculum.  Many teachers that I know oppose NCLB.  The bill forces teachers to teach to the tests, as opposed to making sure students are well-rounded.  And if teachers fail to teach to the tests, the schools get penalized.

Comments

[granny]

Here's an off the cuff observatin on the "testing" aspect of our approach to "education" in this country -

- I am personally familiar with, what appears in any event, to be the newly minted population of US "educated" school children who are conversant with how to pass a multiple choice question test, without having the foggiest notion of the content or intellectual use of the material.

What they know is how to pass a multiple choice "test" - The "buzz-word" mono-culture.