The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, signed into law by President Bush on Jan. 8, 2002, was a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the central federal law in pre-collegiate education. The ESEA, first enacted in 1965 and previously reauthorized in 1994, encompasses Title I, the federal government's flagship aid program for disadvantaged students (Education, 2001, Augu). I agree with the idea of the No Child Left Behind Act. However, working in an urban setting, where there is little to no parental support I feel that teachers/schools should not be fully responsible for the child's educational outcomes. The parents are the first teachers and they should be held accountable as well. Teaching is team effort. Parent, teachers and support staff are to work together. The state blames the teachers through students’ assessments and the schools not making Annual Yearly Progress (AYP). I oppose to the part of blaming the teachers and the schools. No Child Left Behind Act has some good programs in place for the students, but if the student does not take advantage of the resources or apply themselves how is that going to change the problems in the schools. I feel that once again the students in urban settings are being set up for failure. NCLB did increase funding for certain areas, but the funding is not enough to provide everything required by the law. If the state did not place so much energy on test, and focus more on the student just maybe our schools would be in better shape. Some students clam up on test and the district test students so often it can be overwhelming. That is just my opinion. Being a Trainable Aide in the classroom, I have observed on firsthand how there is so much paper work that it takes away from instructional learning. Unfortunately, the law is a bureaucratic problem that teachers must endure if they are to continue teaching (U. Michigan). Teachers barely cover the subject matter in order to attempt to boost federal test scores. Teachers and students are being set up for failure, instead of success. As far as certifications, NCLB changed the requirements for the teaching certificates. According to certain teaching certificates secondary teachers are certified K-12 in all subjects. Now secondary teachers are only able to teach K-8. NCLB also hold teachers responsible for a set amount of professional development hour.
The current status of No Child Left Behind has not changed with much a big impact, test scores are still not making the grade, parents and students are not being accountable for their education. The law of accountability for NCLB is in place but, the blame is still focused toward the teachers and schools. Another status is more testing, which is not working. Also, students are allowed to transfer to a school that is making AYP or given the option of receiving tutoring on the school’s expense. These changes are good but none of them will work if all who are involved are not working as a team (U.S. Liberal Politics, page 2). The law for the No Child Left Behind Act needs more team collaboration from the superintendent, school board, teachers, and parents. Those that are in place that make decisions regarding the schools have no to clue what it takes to teach in the classroom in an urban setting. Everybody job is difficult but everyone must be on one accord to achieve the goals of teaching students of different ethnic groups.
Reference
Research Center: No Child Left Behind, 2001, Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org
No Child Left Behind. 2013, Retrieved from http://usliberals
Michigan Daily 2003, Retrieved from http://www.uwire.com, Education (1ED85)
http://library.ashford.edu/ebooks_newspapers.asp
Library: Ashford.edu. Retrieved from http://www.worldbookonline.com.proxy library.ashford.edu/academic/article?id=ar751625&st=no+child+left+behind
Picus, L. O. (2013). No Child Left Behind Act. In Academic World Book. Retrieved from http://www.worldbookonline.com/academic/article? id=ar751625&st=no+child+left+behind
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