I am still riding the fence on the No Child Left Behind law. I am beginning to understand the desire to make sure that each student is able to perform at certain level. But this law does not take into account the fact that each student has different skill levels and abilities. And it also assumes that all students should perform equally well when tested in the same way. However, the bigger issues here is that schools are failing these standards. Are these standards too high? Are teachers and schools inadequately prepared to teach the material? Are the standardized tests flawed?

In the article "Bush Proposes Broadening the No Child Left Behind Act" by Diana Jean Schemo makes an interesting point. She says, "In 26 states, including New York, there are limits on how many charter schools can be opened. Critics point to a lack of consistent research showing charter schools are any more effective than traditional public schools in raising achievement." President Bush has pushed for the option of failing schools to open charter schools for five years now and still has gotten nowhere near passing it through Congress. If opening a charter school is going to be the primary alternative for failing schools, I think that more research should be conducted to verify the effectiveness of this solution.

In the end, I am left wondering if President Bush (and his supporters) have realized that the goals they had set in the NCLB law are simply too much, too fast, too early. And this "broadening of the law" is essentially relaxing the requirements making it easier for the government to say "we have students who are meeting or surpassing standards." Should the goal of education be to make sure that each student has the same skill set and knowledge base?

Source:
Scheme, Diana (2007, January 25). Bush proposes broadening the no child left behind act. The New York Times, Retrieved January 25, 2007, from http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10C14FA3D5B0C768EDDA80894DF404482

In my opinion, allowing teachers to rate principals is a good idea. It makes principals accountable to not only their supervisors but also to those "under" them in the school hierarchy. Teachers should be able to give a formal evaluation of their supervisor. They are the ones who deal directly with the principal and if they are not happy with his or her performance, teachers should have the opportunity to voice their concerns. This also distributes the power more equally because teachers have a formal input on their supervisors' performance. The next step would be to allow students to assess and rate their teachers on their performance as well. Giving students this power allows students to be involved in the process of raising the quality of education.

Source:
Herszenhorn, David (2007, January 19). Overhaul of schools would let teachers rate principals. The New York Times, Retrieved January 19, 2007, from http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F00C14FD35540C7A8DDDA80894DF404482

Unfortunately, politics is a part of virtually every area. NCLB is no exception. In the article "Democrats Push for Changes to No Child Left Behind Law" by Diana Jean Schemo, it is fairly obvious that Democrats think that one way to improve school performance and achievement is to increase funding. This funding could be used to hire better qualified teachers, train existing teachers to use better methods, update facilities to meet expectations, and many other things. While I agree that more funding could certainly help make NCLB's high standards more feasible, I also believe that the real change is going to have to start with students themselves. The students are the ones who need to be motivated to learn and perform their best. The teacher's role is to help inspire motivation and foster an environment where higher achievement is encouraged. While the administration needs to support teachers in their efforts to be effective educators. Simply increasing funding isn't going to solve the problem. Its the students who need the reason and desire to meet these standards. Even if students don't meet all the required standards, I believe that a better achievement has been made: students have a desire to continue life-long learning.

Source:
Schemo, Diana (2007, January 9). Democrats push for changes to no child left behind law. The New York Times, Retrieved January 9, 2007, from http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70F1EF83E540C7A8CDDA80894DF404482