Weighing In On No Child Left Behind: Parents, Students, Teachers Finally Get Their Say

One of the most common complaints I hear over and over again from teachers is that when it comes to school reform, no one listens to them. No one asks for their input, values their opinion, or deigns to consult those who are actually on the front lines of classrooms. And as a teacher, I felt the same way.

So imagine my surprise when I read that Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is about to embark on a fact finding mission where he will consult with parents, students, and teachers (gasp!) in 15 states to hear what they think about No Child Left Behind (NCLB). I literally pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming!

Both President Obama and Arne Duncan have been pretty clear about their intentions of both revising and renaming the No Child Left Behind Act (see previous post here). That Duncan will actually put his ear to the ground and listen to those whose lives have been, and will continue to be, most affected by the law seems unprecedented, hard to believe, and downright refreshing. Of course, what he will then do with all the information he receives remains to be seen.

So far, Duncan has admitted to seeing some merit in the law that shines a light on our nation’s achievement gap and prevents us from sweeping “those huge disparities with outcomes between white children and Latino children and African-American children… under the rug.” (Did we really need NCLB to tell us there’s an achievement gap in this country – or which schools are under-performing and which kids getting the short end of the stick? I bet parents/teachers/students could have told us that long ago).

Thankfully, he also criticizes the law on many accounts. For example, at a meeting of the Education Writers Association in Washington, Duncan said: “What No Child Left Behind did is, they were absolutely loose on the goals. But they were very tight, very prescriptive on how you get there. I think that was fundamentally backwards." He added that the federal government should be "tight" on the goals, insisting on rigorous academic standards that are uniform across the states, and "much looser" in terms of how states and districts should meet those goals. (Exactly what he means by “tight” and “loose” is still unclear, and no mention of what to do with schools that continue to struggle or with time-lines for achievement. But as per a previous post, I definitely support the idea of rigorous and uniform national standards, not to mention alternative forms of assessment to measure progress which Duncan has unfortunately said little about.)

In related news, former Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings wrote a piece for the Washington Post yesterday  praising NCLB for the apparent rise in elementary and middle school math and English test scores as per our “Nation’s Report Card” published last week. Apparently, she is afraid that the current administration will kick NCLB to the curb. She writes:  “We will hear lots of talk that, when boiled down, amounts to retreat from meaningful accountability and would delay requirements that our kids perform on grade level. Turning our attention away from the problem at hand will only slow down or stop the gains we are seeing across the country.”

Interesting. I wonder what she means by “meaningful accountability?” Because I don’t think there is anything “meaningful” about forcing teachers to bombard kids with test prep so they can score a few points higher on a standardized test. Nor does she have much to say about what it means to “perform on grade level,” since as things stand now, standards vary widely from state to state, and performing on grade level in some amounts to failing miserably in others.

All I have left to say is: Have a great trip, Mr. Duncan! Make sure you listen to as many folks as you can, take plenty of notes, and try to keep an open mind and an open heart. Parents – don’t hold back! Students - tell him what you really think and how you really feel! And teachers – here’s your chance to be heard! Make the most of it because who knows when it will happen again…

(Photo: dchousegrooves’ flickr photostream/ Creative Commons)