California judge says no to homeschooling

[Cynthia]

Rewards Schools and States That Narrow the Achievement Gap. Schools and states that make significant progress in closing the achievement gap will be honored with awards from a "No Child Left Behind" school bonus fund and an "Achievement in Education" state bonus fund.



Puts in Place Consequences for Failure. States that fail to make adequate yearly progress for their disadvantaged students will be subject to losing a portion of their administrative funds. Sanctions will be based on a states failure to narrow the achievement gap in meeting adequate yearly progress requirements in math and reading in grades 3 through 8. Progress on state assessments will be confirmed by state results on an annual sampling of 4th and 8th grade students on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in math and reading.


Protects Homeschools and Private Schools. Federal requirements do not apply to home schools or private schools. Protections in current law would be maintained.


Then we read that Home schools and Private schools ARE PROTECTED? Well, of course they are protected. Of course.

Our school has met AYP since the inception of the NCLB act some 6 years+.  The ?rewards? Bush talks about here come in the form of an ?honor? an ?award? and a bonus fund?  Ok, if you say so Mr. President.  If its there, hasnt affected us one bit.
Otoh, the ?consequences for failure? really pack a mighty punch, which is right up the alley of the Bush administration. He has invaded another country, so why not do the same here in this country, in the form of invading a child?s right to receive a well rounded education.  Now, I see why the ?consequences for failure? outlined below seem to be packed with reprimands and SANCTIONS.
But no one sees what goes on behind the scenes of this act. ?. Leaders (in the form of human beings) who have an honest and genuine desire to help children, but who are  pressured to make sure TEACHERS (also in the form of human beings) make that grade-YESTERDAY.



 I don?t see your typical private school teaching only the basics, btw. I don?t see your typical Home school doing that. But, most of the children in this nation attend Public Schools. Yet, they are given LESS because of the SANCTIONS AND PUNITIVE REACTIONS.
And, while  I do not disagree with the bottom line of anything called a NCLB act; an act that wants to ensure  that all kids can learn to read, write and compute in math. I believe that to be cheating our kids out of more. The curriculum is boiling down to ONE SIZE FITS ALL curriculum as I see it daily in my classroom. We must teach all kids from the same book, with very little time to differentiate instruction. That's not the way it used to be. Education in the form of today's reading first schools fail to understand child development.
I will say it again, there?s nothing wrong with change, improvement and a desire to help a child learn. But, as I see it daily in my work place, schools are unjustly being pressured, kids are pressured to the point where they are not making the grade. I believe the idea of all for one, by a said time is what is wrong with the act.

The system was actually doing quite well before, and the goals were very much attainable. Perhaps those goals were never met to be attained by the Bush administration. I wouldn?t put it past him to nudge the Public Schools completely out.

Children are not given ENOUGH, and isn?t that what the NCLB was set up to do; provide more for children. It isn?t happening that way, as I see it---except in the private sector. hmmm.




Supplements Reading First with an Early Childhood Reading Initiative. States participating in the Reading First program will have the option to receive "Early Reading First" funding to implement research-based reading programs in existing pre-school programs and Head Start programs that feed into participating elementary schools. The purpose of this program is to illustrate on a larger scale recent research findings that children taught pre-reading and math skills in pre-school enter school ready to learn reading and mathematics.

Kindergarten children are forced to sit for 90 minutes to chant, repeat, memorize letters and sounds. SIT FOR 90 MINUTES?....which is  mandated by the State which supports the reading first reading program, btw.Trickles DOWN FROM THE ORIGINAL ACT, I might add.
Kindergarten children need to experience the world around them. The brain demands it. A basic ECE philosophy is not even considered within this ACT, apparently.  That?s why I ask if you, BT, if you know anything about child development.
The NCLB act needs to be reorganized to support the child.  ?and yet people complain that it is the teachers who are not willing to give and provide. That is nonsense.  The children are losing out. That has been my assertion all along.









The Administration is committed to ensuring that every child can read by the third grade. To help meet this goal, a new program will be established known as the "Reading First" initiative.
Ok, I'll say it again. READING FIRST, sure ok..there's nothing wrong with that. But, the children deserve more. Oh and btw, they were already reading well before the act (where I teach, anyway). Now, they are provided with less of an education, because of the mandates and restrictions of this Reading First innitiative. There are critical time issues- not enough time to teach other subjects, too many assessments given to appease the adminitration. There is no time for anything else. The kids are going to be the ones who lose out.


 
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/reports/no-child-left-behind.html#3

[_JS]

The curriculum is boiling down to ONE SIZE FITS ALL curriculum as I see it daily in my classroom. We must teach all kids from the same book, with very little time to differentiate instruction. That's not the way it used to be. Education in the form of today's reading first schools fail to understand child development.

I think you hit the nail on the head Cynthia.

Also, how does it make sense to pull resources from a school that is not meeting standards? Do we have a system of inspectors as in the UK, like OFSTED, that goes to the schools and gives some sort of in-depth analysis as to why a school is failing? The NCLB would seem to demand such a program.

I'm the first to admit that I am not an expert in early child development or education. I have two young children, one of whom is in school (second grade). I want all children to receive the absolute best education possible no matter their race, gender, or class. To me it isn't about the future of this country, but the future of this world, of future generations,  - of humanity.

I have not heard or read good things about NCLB. Not from teachers, not from administrators, not from the governors of states who are forced to implement it. If a project is failing then we need to go back to the drawing board and either alter it, or start from the beginning. The bottom line is: is NCLB a success or not? Don't measure it by its own standards either. We can use independent performance measures and judge it by those criteria.

If a new law is written, lets use the experts and their expertise to do it. The educators and experts in early childhood development are the one's who know. It would be folly to ignore them.

[Amianthus]

Also, how does it make sense to pull resources from a school that is not meeting standards? Do we have a system of inspectors as in the UK, like OFSTED, that goes to the schools and gives some sort of in-depth analysis as to why a school is failing? The NCLB would seem to demand such a program.

Actually, the NCLB mandates that states INCREASE funding to schools that perform poorly, until they fail to meet PROGRESS goals (not an absolute milestone) for three consecutive years. And after that, the administration budget is reduced - not the teaching budget - because the state is mandated to take over control of the school, and the state has it's own budget for that.

I find it interesting that people keep on bringing in editorials about what the act does and does not do, rather than quoting from the act directly. I guess it's because if they quoted from the act directly, they would contradict their own arguments.

[Cynthia]

Kimba,

What does #24 mean?

[BT]

But, children deserve more than they are getting these days in the public schools.

Precisely.

They don't need to be taught to the test, they don't need to be triaged, they don't need to be pawns in school administrators attempts to game the system so they can protect their turf.

They need to taught building  upon a solid foundation of reading, writing, arithmetic and the sciences.

And the results should be measurable.

If one quarter of the energy was spent doing just that instead of playing blame games, and making excuses we wouldn't be having this discussion and the public school monopoly would be safe.

[sirs]

I find it interesting that people keep on bringing in editorials about what the act does and does not do, rather than quoting from the act directly. I guess it's because if they quoted from the act directly, they would contradict their own arguments.

Hit the nail on the head, with that one Ami

[kimba1]

it`s how many pages so far about this subject
right now it`s 25
it`s indicated on top

[_JS]

Also, how does it make sense to pull resources from a school that is not meeting standards? Do we have a system of inspectors as in the UK, like OFSTED, that goes to the schools and gives some sort of in-depth analysis as to why a school is failing? The NCLB would seem to demand such a program.

Actually, the NCLB mandates that states INCREASE funding to schools that perform poorly, until they fail to meet PROGRESS goals (not an absolute milestone) for three consecutive years. And after that, the administration budget is reduced - not the teaching budget - because the state is mandated to take over control of the school, and the state has it's own budget for that.

I find it interesting that people keep on bringing in editorials about what the act does and does not do, rather than quoting from the act directly. I guess it's because if they quoted from the act directly, they would contradict their own arguments.

As I said, I'm no expert. As I also said, if the NCLB is meeting independent performance measures and therefore a "success" then it should be kept.

[Cynthia]

Who Do You Believe? Me or Your Lying Eyes?
Published by Robert Pondiscio on January 18, 2008 in Curriculum, Opinion and Testing. Tags: accountability, narrowing of the curriculum, NCLB.
I respect and admire eduwonk, but I have to strenuously disagree with his characterization of the impact of testing and No Child Left Behind as ?hysterics.? I wholeheartedly support accountability, and I don?t have a problem with standardized tests. Really, I don?t. But one cannot blithely dismiss the narrowing of the curriculum that has occurred in schools ? especially struggling inner city schools ? in order to beef up test scores. It?s literacy, math and not much else, despite compelling evidence that content knowledge is the key to reading comprehension. We?re serving students in our most challenged schools a thin gruel that doesn?t meet any reasonable standard for an education. We simply have to do better, not dismiss the critics. The NY Times highlighted a few schools that are aiming higher, but to suggest that this shows testing concerns are overblown is a curious conclusion.
It bothers me to hear a well-respected policy analyst take such a stance, for I fear it could invite other less serious observers to downplay the deleterious impact of testing culture, rather than do the hard work of creating and implementing an accountability strategy that resists being gamed, dumbed-down, or measures only the thinnest slices of school performance. ?All that test prep isn?t that bad,? it will be argued. ?At least they?re learning something.? Isn?t it pretty to think so?
Make no mistake. There are classrooms where students go weeks, months, an entire school year without social studies, science, art and music. I?ve seen them, been in them, and worked with teachers who, despite great misgivings, felt pressured to run them. It?s neither hysterics nor hyperbole. It?s a legitimate issue that left unaddressed or blithely dismissed, could ultimately stop reform dead in its tracks. The very worst thing that can occur is if people believe the accountability cure is worse than the disease. ?Drill and kill? is not the issue. It?s kids who can decode, but can?t comprehend. It?s kids who get to high school and college without the functional knowledge they need to succeed in higher education and as full participants in society. It?s complacency that kids who score on grade level are being educated, when all they?re doing is stepping over a hurdle that is conveniently lowered year after year.
Dismiss it at your peril. It?s real. I?ve seen it, lived it. I?ll introduce you to the students who?ve been damaged by it. Accountability was designed to help them, not do further harm. Good enough is not good enough.
Oh, my. I?m having a Hillary moment?.I just don?t want to see us fall backwards.
Update: The redoubtable eduwonk thinks I doth protest too much. Perhaps so. But why use two words when ten will do?
Update II: eduwonkette has my back.

http://www.coreknowledge.org/blog/2008/01/18/who-do-you-believe-me-or-your-lying-eyes/



Ami,
You?ll enjoy this one!
What we're quibbling about is who's responsible for cutting social studies and science - NCLB or teachers/schools. According to Barone, it's the schools, stupid. Because all schools don't narrow their curriculum post-NCLB, NCLB does not provide incentives to narrow the curriculum.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/eduwonkette/2008/02/social_studies_science_and_ncl.html

[sirs]

What a shock.....more editorials vs pointing out the exact provisions of contention within NCLB     

[_JS]

What a shock.....more editorials vs pointing out the exact provisions of contention within NCLB     

Sirs, you might try contributing to the debate in a meaningful way as opposed to negatively attacking people who are trying to make positive contributions. I seriously doubt your last two posts are what Bt had in mind when he asked for the level of debate to be raised.

[Cynthia]

http://www.cta.org/issues/esea/Compelling+NCLB+Stories.htm


stories....tied to test.

Release us from the ropes of wrath.

[sirs]

Js, if you'd bother going back in the thread, you wouldn't look so weak in this attempt to minimize my criticism.  FYI, I have contributed substantial commentary and suggestions, all rebuffed because "I'm not a teacher, I can't possibly know what I'm talking about"

[Cynthia]

Counting up...counting down....
Go!

[Cynthia]

#376