No Child-Left Behind Act Argument
“A hopeful America is one in which not one child is left behind.” This quote from President George W. Bush at a recent news conference represents the current philosophy of our government on education. In 2001 President Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The new law is an updated version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) which was signed into law in 1965. Since then standardized testing has been a part of our school system in one form or another, yet there is little evidence that these tests have improved children’s learning through the years.
The premise of the No Child Left Behind Act is that every child has an equal opportunity for a good education. For this goal to be met, each state must bring 95-100% of …show more content…
Although standardized testing is the way that the NCLB is measuring student, teacher, and school success it does not give a clear picture of what children know or are capable of learning. These tests may have a purpose in checking student progress, but the emphasis on the tests as the only standard for checking progress only reports learning outcomes and not the process by which students get to the answer. Knowing an answer for a test without knowing in what situation to use the process has no practical application for the student and will soon be forgotten. Schools and teachers would have a clearer picture of what student’s actual progress was if in addition to standardized tests they were allowed to use other methods of student evaluation. The No Child Left Behind Act through standardized testing strives to pinpoint those children who are struggling in certain academic areas. Often teachers center learning material on the tests and do not have time to observe their students, waiting instead for the test results to show those students who are not performing well. However, if teachers used observation and daily interactions as a gauge they would be able to intervene and help floundering students before they even get to the
The premise of the No Child Left Behind Act is that every child has an equal opportunity for a good education. For this goal to be met, each state must bring 95-100% of …show more content…
Although standardized testing is the way that the NCLB is measuring student, teacher, and school success it does not give a clear picture of what children know or are capable of learning. These tests may have a purpose in checking student progress, but the emphasis on the tests as the only standard for checking progress only reports learning outcomes and not the process by which students get to the answer. Knowing an answer for a test without knowing in what situation to use the process has no practical application for the student and will soon be forgotten. Schools and teachers would have a clearer picture of what student’s actual progress was if in addition to standardized tests they were allowed to use other methods of student evaluation. The No Child Left Behind Act through standardized testing strives to pinpoint those children who are struggling in certain academic areas. Often teachers center learning material on the tests and do not have time to observe their students, waiting instead for the test results to show those students who are not performing well. However, if teachers used observation and daily interactions as a gauge they would be able to intervene and help floundering students before they even get to the