The "No Child Left Behind" Debate

Pros
• Schools are not only held accountable for achievement schoolwide but among various subgroups, with the intent of closing the achievement gap between white and minority students.
• Parents are apprised of student achievement.
• Standards are set for teacher qualifications.
• Accountability standards are set and measured by each state every year.

Cons
• Teachers feel compelled to “teach to the test,” which means so much time is spent on drilling students to achieve in core testing subjects that areas such as art, music and physical education are often neglected.
• Credit is given only to schools that succeed in bringing up low-performing students to proficiency level, not on pushing advanced students to a higher level—hence the counter-slogan “Smart child left behind.”
• Slow learners who make significant progress, and the teachers who help them, can still be deemed failures by federal standards.
• At the state level, the No Child Left Behind Act is significantly underfunded.
—M.M.

On Newsstands 12/1

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The "No Child Left Behind" Debate

On Newsstands 12/1

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