No Child Left Behind - Essay Example

Running Head: No Child Left Behind: Is it Working No Child Left Behind: Is it Working of the of the No Child Left Behind: Is it Working The No Child Left Behind Act is a United States Federal Law that reauthorizes an amount f federal programs that seek to progress the performance f America's primary and secondary schools by increasing the standards f responsibility for states, as well as providing parents more flexibility in selecting which schools their children will attend. Furthermore it promotes an amplified focus on reading and re-permits the Elementary and Secondary Act f 1965 (ESEA). This act implements education transformation. Many parents f school age children question this program. Testing scores have not improved from this program and withholding money from the schools will only do more harm than good. Many children in the United States experience reading failure. According to the National Assessment f Educational Progress (NAEP) on reading in 2003, thirty-seven percent f fourth graders are reading below the Basic Proficiency level. This is the same level f failure that was reported in 1992 (Making NCLB work) Under this plan, all public schools students must be proficient in reading and math by the year 2014. Only students in second grade and beyond are required to test. In grades three through eight and once during high school, reading and math development will be calculated yearly. Testing in science will also be conducted by the end f the 2007-2008 school year. By the end f the 2005-2006 school year, teachers will also be required to be "highly qualified" (Wikipedia) According to this program, a highly qualified teacher is defined as an individual who has fulfilled the states' qualifications and licensure requirements. New teachers entering this field are required to acquire at least a bachelor's degree. If they will be teaching at an elementary school, they must pass a test known as the California Subject Examination for Teachers (CSET) and the California Basic Education Skills Test (CBEST). These tests replicate the subject matter understanding required to teach in California and demonstrates proficiency in basic reading and writing, mathematics and English. Teachers that are not new must pass a test in which state they teach in that demonstrates their subject understanding and teaching abilities. Each state has a curriculum structure. Each one summarizes the course f study by local school districts. This is how they develop programs directing state and local textbook adoption processes. Most states' average curriculum consists f English Language Arts, Mathematics, History/Social Science, and Science. Many states have no adopted standards in the remaining vicinities f curriculum such as foreign language, Physical Education and health. Each year schools, school districts, and the state must make adequate yearly progress (AYP). For Unified school districts K-12, 23.0% f their students must score proficient or above in ELA and 23.7% must do so in math. By the 2007-2008 school year, 34.0% must score proficient or above in ELA and 34.6% in math. Scores must improve annually with the same goal f 100% proficient or above by the 2013-2014 school year. States need to develop standards-based tests in science by the 2007-2008 school year (California School Accountability System under the Federal NCLB act). Under the accountability provisions, states must explain how they will close the achievement gap by making certain that all students reach academic proficiency. States must also generate annual state and school district report cards that notify parents and the surrounding communities regarding the state and school progress. Many states are requesting authorization to change the amount f students whose scores do not have to be calculated in required racial categories. Test scores are required to be reported by group such as race, disability, or economic circumstances. By law if one group f students fails to meet the standards, the whole school can be reprimanded. It was found by the Associated Press that states have set widely different minimum standards for how many children must be counted, allowing schools to exclude 1.9 million scores in required racial categories (Education Chief to look at kids left behind) This causes a great problem. The prime test scores that are being disregarded are those f Hispanic students in California who don't speak English well, African-Americans in the Chicago suburbs, American Indians in the Northwest and special education students in Virginia. Texas was previously well-known as a model for this law, now eliminates scores f two complete groups, American Indian students and Asian students. The same thing happened in Arkansas. It is up to state educators when a groups test scores are too minute to count. Students in larger racial categories have had their scores asked to be exempt by the government. Two states have already successfully petitioned the government for these exemptions in the past two years. About one in every fourteen test scores aren't being counted under the law's racial categories. There are less than two percent f white student's scores not being counted and approximately ten percent f Hispanics scores are excluded. That is a great difference. Until recently, numerous students with disabilities have been excluded from evaluations or tested lower than their grade assignment. Studies have revealed on several incidents that English language learners (ELL) perform significantly lower on language arts tests compared to math and science tests. There is a continuing increase f low-achieving ELL students. This makes it more difficult to achieve sufficient yearly progress for both ELL and the overall student population. Minorities make up the cosmic majority f students whose scores are being excluded, and the figures continue to ascend. One specific test is given to native Spanish speakers, the Standardizes Testing and Reporting program, also known as the STAR program. This test is given practically to all California public school students in grades two through eleventh. The California law requires school districts to provide this test to students who are in their first year in a California school. It compares the Spanish speaking students to other students in twelve states with the largest number f Spanish speaking students. California is included in this category. There is also an assessment test implemented in the 2000-2001 school year that tests the proficiency and progress f those students who come to school speaking another language. The achievement gap exists before students ever cross school grounds, and this can greatly affect their educational progress and success (Overview f Student Issues) Poverty also plays a large role in the low achievement f ELL. Students' parent's whose main language was not English had low performance levels. Poverty is not the cause f low achievement but it does set the circumstance for it. Some educators have lower expectations for the educational achievement f colored students. The goal f the NCLB is for students f every race to become one hundred percent proficient in English language arts. The most important goal is to close the enormous achievement gap. The department f education's goal is to provide a copy f significant stipulations to the parents f ELL. There are ten key benefits for parents. They include... 1) To have their children receive a quality education taught by a highly qualified teacher. 2) To have their child learn English and other subjects such as reading-language arts and math at the same academic level f all other students. 3) To know their child has been identified and recommended for an English language acquisition program with the right to accept or refuse placement. 4) To choose a different English language acquisition program for their child. 5) To transfer their child to another school if their child's school is identified as "in need f improvement". 6) To apply for supplemental services for their child, such as tutoring if the school is in need f improvement for two years. 7) To have their child tested annually to assess their progress in English language acquisition. 8) To receive information regarding their child's performance on academic tests. 9) To have their child taught with programs that are scientifically proven to work. 10) To have the opportunity for their child to reach their greatest academic potential. Each f these benefits will help parents take a more involved role. If schools, school district and states would focus more on reading, it might help ELL achieve the goals f the NCLB. Performances can also be tracked to recognize patterns f improvement or the lack of. Schools can furthermore encourage test accommodations such as providing more time for tests. These recommendations may help reach the goals f the NCLB. A candidate for State Assembly in the 41st Assembly District, Amy Hayes-Raitt claims "'No Child Left Behind' is leaving thousands f California children behind-far behind." With the low achievement in the Santa Monica school district, African Americans and Latino students have failed to achieve at least a 2.0 grade point average. They were authorized to receive one million dollars this year but have received less than four hundred fifty thousand dollars according to the California Department f Education (Kelly Hayes-Raitt sues President Bush) Countless schools claim the NCLB Act is an unfunded directive. States such as Michigan, Texas and Vermont feel their schools should not be required to spend their own funds to act in accordance with the under funded federal requirements. Many schools are authorized large amounts f money, however are not receiving very much for fulfilling the requirements by the NCLB act. Numerous claims have been made in disagreement to the Act. States claim that after school programs are being ignored. Students with learning disabilities do not receive extra assistance when taking standardized tests and can endanger the rating the school gets as a whole. The NCLB also focuses on improving the average student's education and may disregard individual differences between students. The NCLB also focuses on basic educational classes and eliminates funding from music programs, art programs, etc. There are several sources f funding. One specific source is for the professional development. Title I, Part A, f the act requires school districts to use at least five percent f their Title I funds to guarantee teachers are highly qualified and meet the states' standards. Title II, Part A, provides funds for professional development subject matter and improving teaching expertise and assessment. The Federal government has spent more money this past year on elementary and secondary (K-12) education than ever before in the History f the United States. Funding has rocketed since the fiscal year f 2001 with the closing Clinton Budget. The Title I aid for disadvantaged students has also increased forty-one percent. President Bush and Congress expanded education funding even though we were in Iraq. The NCLB deliberately uses federal funding as power to make certain that all the Nation's children are capable to read, write and understand Mathematics well by the time they graduate from High School (California's School Accountability System) Schools that do not meet AYP requirements for two years will be identified as "in need f improvement". Schools have to then offer parents the opportunity f sending their kids to another school within the district. In the case that the school needs improvement, they have to modify a plan and in return it has to be approved by the district. If schools do not improve in the following year, corrective action must be taken and some staff members may be removed, and school days may also be extended. Governor Schwarzenegger released a modification f the budget he proposed in January for the upcoming school year. State revenues are much higher than they were anticipated to be a few months ago so he proposed to direct a considerable amount to California's grades K-12 and Community Colleges. Prior to this happening, the State Legislature must modify the proposal before it moves on to the next step. This revision will be used for local school budgeting processes for the approaching school year. Despite the critical need to boost quality educational opportunities, President Bush has cut funding by 3.8% for the fiscal year f 2007. President Bush has misguided priorities, driving up the depict to an all new record level with a failed tax policy. This cuts the most critical programs for students and families (Bush Fiscal Year 2007 Education Budget) Bush and Congress failed to present the NCLB by fifteen billion dollars and only gave half f the funds promised meant for Title I. The achievement gap is also spreading farther apart as an end result f President Bush's broken promise f 12.7 million dollars to 3.7 million disadvantaged students. 1.3 million Children are also being deprived f highly qualified teachers in classrooms due to the broken promise f two hundred eighty-eight million dollars to advance teacher quality. Bush also is not supplying head start services any money which means this program will either have to cut the quality f the school or the number f children they teach. For the reason f increased costs in the community, parents may have to cut back on high quality head start schools that have been confirmed to help children gain knowledge at an early age. Many teachers believe that the NCLB is hurting students. It is also more paperwork, degrees and certificates for teachers. It also makes more hoops to jump through that don't necessarily make someone a better teacher. If a teacher is given the National teacher's Exam (NTE), that gives them the highly qualified status but it doesn't necessarily make them highly qualified. What makes someone highly qualified is experience and continual staff development. However, the states are given less and less money for staff development every year. That makes it harder to get training. The main problem teachers see is that the government wants to stand over the education system and tell them what to do without giving them the tools to do it. Then when the children fail, the teachers get blamed. For some parents f an Elementary school student, some feel the NCLB does nothing to help a child's learning experience. When there are advanced students and disadvantaged students in the same classroom, who is going to do better. The answer is neither. The students that are advanced for their grade get dragged behind due to the disadvantaged students. Because they can not keep up, it pulls the advanced students back, not allowing them to learn at their full capacity. At the same time, it isn't fair for the disadvantaged students to be left behind because they can't keep up with the higher learners in their class. This is a problem that is going to take some time fix and hopefully it won't further damage the schools learning systems. References "2 Million Scores Ignored in 'No Child' Loophole." MSNBC. 17 Apr. 2006. 18 Apr. 2006 . "Assessment Overview." EdSource Online. 28 May 2006 . "Bush Fiscal Year 2007 Education Budget:" Edworkforce. Feb. 2006. 28 May 2006 . "California's School Accountability System Under the Federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)." EdSource Online. Nov. 2004. 27 May 2006 . "Challenges in the No Child Left Behind Act for English Language Learners." http://www.cse.ucla.edu. Winter 2004. 27 May 2006 . "Education Chief to Look At Kids Left Behind." 21 Apr. 2006. 26 Apr. 2006 . Getchel, Renee. E-Mail interview. 23 May 2006. "Governor Schwarzenegger Unveils May's Revision." EdSource Online. 28 May 2006 . "Kelly Hayes-Raitt Sues President Bush Over "No Child Left Behind" Act." Kelly for Assembly. 31 Mar. 2006. 18 Apr. 2006 . "Making NCLB Work." Aug. 2006. 28 May 2006 . "No Child Left Behind Act." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 24 May 2006. 28 May 2006 . "No Child Left Behind Implementation Station." 28 May 2006 . "Overview f Student Issues." EdSource Online. 27 May 2006 . "Paige Outlines No Child Left Behind Act's "Ten Key Benefits for Parents f English Language Learners"" ED.Gov. 12 May 2005. 28 May 2006 . "Standards and Curriculum Overview." Edsource Online. 27 May 2006 . Read More