Saturday, March 20, 2010

Children Left Behind

One of the major issues that I and many educators have with Bush's 'No Child Left Behind' bill is the fact that educators are supposed to have all students reading at grade level by 2013. If you've ever been close to a classroom in America you realize that is not only tremendously funny, but also impossible. In my homeroom language arts class all but one of my students reads between a 2nd and 3rd grade level. The one who is not reading in this category reads at a 5th grade level. As a reminder...I TEACH 7TH GRADE!!!

What is even more ludicrous is the fact that ALL students are to be reading at grade level, including students with severe and profound disabilities, mental retardation, and extremely troublesome learning disabilities. The irony of the entire situation is the fact that the 'No Child Left Behind' bill is precisely what is preventing educators from teaching their students the skills needed to be able to read at grade level. How can that be? The answer is simple. Educators are being forced to teach to the test. Instead of educators teaching students the necessary skills needed to become critical thinkers, most educators are forced to spend most of their classtime just making sure that their students pass the end of grade test. Since the passing of the bill, there have been no real changes in America's education system unless you count the fact that students and teachers have been put under so much pressure that students are becoming disgruntled and educators are leaving the profession in record numbers.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it! If it is broke, please fix it! 'No Child Left Behind' isn't working, and it's time for a massive, and real, solution to America's education crisis.

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