WOOLSEY, EDUCATORS CRITICIZE NO CHILD LEFT BEHING
Marin (CA) Independent -- April 28, 2007
by Tad Whitaker
North Bay educators criticized the federal No Child Left Behind Act's
accountability standards and suggested ways to fix them during a House
Subcommittee session on education Friday at Marin Civic Center.
Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Petaluma, and Rep. Dale Kildee, D-Mich., expressed
support for Venetia Valley Elementary School Assistant Principal Pepe
Gonzalez, Santa Rosa City schools chief Sharon Liddell and others who
believe the legislation sets unreasonable goals and forces teachers to
focus on standardized test results.
Remedies suggested by the educators included school-by-school standards
that reward annual progress, and making federal reading grants
available
to individual schools rather than just districts.
The meeting, part of a national, multi-year debate to reauthorize the
legislation, impressed local school board members who said both Woolsey
and Kildee appeared to understand that a nuanced approach to fixing
schools is needed.
"They certainly responded," San Rafael Board of Education member Linda
Jackson said.
No Child Left Behind, which passed in 2002 with bipartisan support from
President Bush and Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., set national standard
goals for educating children and included numerous repercussions for
schools that didn't meet them.
Minority and special education groups have expressed support for the
law
because they say it amounts to civil rights legislation that forces
educators to work with students who might otherwise be ignored. But
many
educators and political leaders, including Woolsey - who voted for the
act - have complained the program is underfunded, expects too much and
threatens schools that are making progress.
Woolsey acknowledged Friday that she knew little about national
education until being appointed to the subcommittee. To learn more, she
began volunteering for an hour every Monday at a school near her
Petaluma home before flying to Washington, D.C.
She said the teachers and administrators impressed her with their
ability to teach to a diverse student population during the weekly
sessions that took place over a period of several months. But she said
that, when the test scores were released, the school failed despite
obvious student improvements.
"These teachers had tears in their eyes," Woolsey said. "It was clear
to
me you can't have one standard."
Woolsey and Kildee listened as educators described similar situations
in
their schools and districts that caused morale to decline, particularly
among teachers who are making progress with students learning English
or
receiving special education. All five of those who testified said
officials should drop the blanket national standard and adopt a policy
that allows a customized approach.
"Otherwise, it's just a target that doesn't mean much," said Sonoma
Valley High School teacher Melanie Blake.
Kildee said he has heard similar problems around the nation.
He said the basic structure of No Child Left Behind, including its
demand for annual improvements, will likely remain in place when
lawmakers vote in 2009. But, he noted, a switch toward a nuanced,
school-by-school assessment became more likely when Democrats won the
House and the Senate last fall.
"I'm hopeful that with a new Congress, we'll do better," he said.
http://www.marinij.com/ci_5771872
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