Parents and educators would prefer to mend No Child Left Behind Act
According to a recently released survey commissioned by the Education Testing Service (ETS), despite many criticisms, parents and educators would rather mend than end the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which requires all children to be academically "proficient" by 2014. The survey also indicates that the general public is interested in national education standards. The survey, which polled 1,000 members of the public, 626 parents of students from kindergarten through 12th grade, 251 teachers and 101 school administrators, found that many of the participants knew few details about NCLB or harbored misconceptions. However, pollsters Peter D. Hart and David Winston note public support for NCLB increases when the law is explained.
Critics question the survey's description of the law. According to Robert Schaeffer, public education director of the FairTest coalition, which advocates sweeping changes to NCLB, the survey’s definition of NCLB overlooks the negative ramifications of an underfunded "lock-step focus on a test-and-punish regime." He adds, "There is not a single credible education measurement expert in the country who believes the 2014 deadline for all children being proficient is realistic."
The survey found most teachers (77%) and administrators (63%) hold a "staunchly negative" view of NCLB, though only a small percentage would dump it. All the groups that participated in the survey agree that lack of parental involvement and classroom discipline are two main problems in failing schools. They also agree that those schools need more funding to hire teachers and reduce class size and that administrators should be required to develop a real "change of plan." However, the idea of replacing "many teachers" was endorsed by only 12% of the general public, below "do nothing" which garnered 18%. Groups were split on replacing state-by-state academic standards with national ones. Most of the general public favors it (59%). Most teachers (43% support) and administrators (41%) do not. The majority of Latinos (55%) said the test scores of English learners should count immediately. Most teachers (77%) and administrators (85%) said the scores should be excluded for two or three years while those students improve their English. According to California’s Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell, the views of Latinos are an understandable reflection of that community's desire not to be overlooked in the push to improve schools.
Meanwhile a study conducted by RAND Corp., which is tracking the classroom impact of NCLB in California, Georgia, and Pennsylvania, suggests that teachers are adjusting their teaching practices in response to the law, but not always in ways that educators and policymakers might want. The majority of elementary and middle school science and math teachers in all three states report in surveys that they are making positive changes in the classroom by focusing on their states’ academic standards or searching for better teaching methods. At the same time, though, sizable percentages of educators are also spending more time teaching test-taking strategies, focusing more narrowly on the topics covered on state tests, and tailoring teaching to the "bubble kids"—the students who fall just below the proficiency cutoffs on state tests. The findings of this study also suggest that educators are viewing and responding to the federal law in complicated ways. For instance, across all three states, two-thirds or more of superintendents and principals and 40% to 60% of teachers said that staff focus on student learning has improved as a result of the new accountability pressures. However, many also agreed that staff morale has declined. Teachers were more likely than the administrators, though, to pick up on problems or negative consequences with the testing-and-accountability systems in their states, such as a concern that state tests are misaligned with the curriculum. While most teachers and administrators agreed that learning opportunities for struggling students have improved as a result of the law, half or more of teachers across the three states at all school level worry that high-achieving students were not receiving "appropriately challenging curriculum or instruction."
Los Angeles Times
By Howard Blume
[Full story]
Education Week
By Debra Viadero
[Full story]
[Editor’s Note: Both reports are below. News of other recent reports on the impact of NCLB and its prospects for Congressional reauthorization are available at the third link.]
[ETS NCLB survey]
[RAND Corp. NCLB study]
[NSBA School Law pages on NCLB prospects]