No Child Left Behind
A Current News Feature

Welcome to Designed Instruction's news strand on NCLB! It's been years now since No Child Left Behind became law, and yet the debate continues. Postings are in chronological order, starting with the most recent.

Feds to override state charter caps?
States have traditionally set their own limits, but soon it may be out of their hands. Some believe that if Congress pursues Bush's idea, the charter override will likely pass constitutional muster... Chicago Sun-Times (1/26/07)

Department of Ed plans to toughen, not weaken, the law
A $4,000 voucher for students attending failing public schools to attend private ones? Teachers sent to lower-performing schools despite union contracts? Report cards that compare state tests scores with performance on national exams? Read on... Chicago Tribune (1/25/07)

President Bush delivers State of the Union Address: "The No Child Left Behind Act has worked for America's children -- and I ask Congress to reauthorize this good law. "
January 23, 2007: Democrats have the majority. The President urges reauthorization. What will be the outcome? Read this EdLog special.

Fewer than 100 "dangerous schools," or so they say...
Though NCLB requires identification of dangerous schools, many states do not require reporting of all crimes. The result? Our kids are safe. Hmmm... USA TODAY (1/18/07)

Alliance between Bush and Democrats in the works?
Read on... The Washington Times (1/12/07)

Changes due to NCLB
Though many don't agree, some believe there have certainly been changes brought about by NCLB. Read this article, on the five-year anniversary of the law's signing... USA TODAY (1/8/07)

Reauthorization in 2007?
The bid is up for reauthorization of NCLB, and the rhetoric is becoming heated. Put the "money into the teachers, teaching them how to be better assessors, and building in methods for spot checking and getting feedback," urges Monty Neill, director of FairTest and chairman of a coalition called the Forum on Educational Accountability. Michael Petrilli, vice president for national programs and policy of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, says he would keep the goals of NCLB, but put the federal government's effort into setting strong national standards instead of the widely varying state standards that currently exist, then have the states and districts figure out on their own how to get students to meet those standards. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Education asks critics to be patient. Read on... The Christian Science Monitor (1/7/07)

NCLB a fraud
Or so argues East Rochester (N.Y.) School District schools chief Howard Maffucci. Maffucci claims that, as in the 1983 A Nation at Risk report, schools are being made a scapegoat for the nation's troubles, and that the law should be scrapped... Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (New York) (12/21/07)

Trying to revive the challenge
Plaintiffs include nine school districts in Michigan, Texas and Vermont, and NEA affiliates in those states and in Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Utah. The request? Revive the lawsuit demanding additional federal funding. The suit was dismissed in November 2005, when a federal judge asked why states and districts that did not wish to participate did not just walk away from it... The Boston Globe/Associated Press (11/28/07)

Parents at odds with NCLB rule on military recruiters
Though NCLB policy requires high schools to share student contact information with military recruiters, parents and teens may "opt out" of having such information released. Few know, and some mean to set that straight... USA TODAY (11/2/07)

No more NCLB in Kansas?
Stay tuned over the next few months as the Kansas Board of Education studies the option of pulling out of NCLB along with the federal funds attached... Journal-World (Lawrence, Kansas) (9/15/06)

Policy changes with respect to limited-English learners
The U.S. Department of Education gives states permission to omit test scores of newly enrolled, limited-English kids when grading schools. Read the White House press release... Whitehouse News (Washington, DC) (9/13/06)

Why, it's like Ivory soap!
Education Secretary Margaret Spellings strongly supported No Child Left Behind and said the law needs little in the way of revisions. "I talk about No Child Left Behind like Ivory soap: It's 99.9 percent pure or something," Spellings told reporters. "There's not much needed in the way of change," reports the Associated Press... Washington Post/Associated Press (8/30/06)

"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts." - Albert Einstein
When "accountability" is considered to be more than a word or a set of numbers... Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (8/28/06)

Does it depend on what you know?
Critics of NCLB point to a recent Gallup Poll showing that 58 percent of Americans believe the five-year-old No Child Left Behind law has either harmed or had no effect on schools, compared with just over a quarter who believe it has helped. The poll's director, Lowell Rose, even goes so far as to say that, "Systematically, the public rejects every strategy in it." Others claim the poll, co-authored by the Phi Delta Kappa teachers' association, carries data that may bear a closer look -- 45 percent of respondents said they know very little about the bill, and of those who did report some knowledge, opinions were split: 42 percent reported a favorable impression, and only 47 percent reported an unfavorable one... U.S. News & World Report (8/23/06)

And yet, none made it...
The requirement of all states was to have "highly qualified" teachers in every core academic class by the end of last school year. None made it. In fact, according to a recent review released by the U.S. Department of Education, most of the action plans are not even complete... The Boston Globe /Associated Press (8/17/06)

Maine expects extra questions to turn trick
By adding additional items to its statewide reading and math assessments, Maine feels its tests will more closely to state standards, and that the federal government will finally approve the state's testing system... Portland Press Herald (Maine) (7/24/06)

34 states have problems, according to feds
In addition to the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, 34 states have significant problems with their tests, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Ten states get full approval, and two are rejected... USA TODAY (7/7/06)

Not the way a partnership is run
Nebraska Education Commissioner Doug Christensen lashes out at the U.S. Department of Education for rejecting his state's assessment system... Lincoln Journal Star (Neb.) (7/5/06)

We'll talk about it...
April's Associated Press report that the scores of nearly 2 million students are being ignored in adequate yearly progress reports prompts U.S. Deputy Education Secretary Ray Simon to say that state officials will be summoned to a conference this fall to review how and why they are excluding students... The Boston Globe/Associated Press (6/13/06)

"Opt-out" box for military recruitment in CA
Schools in CA now required to add an "opt out" box to emergency contact forms for parents who wish their child's contact information left off of lists schools send to military recruiters. Is it protection from overly aggressive recruiters, or a strike at the heart of the military? Read on... San Francisco Chronicle (5/26/06)

Rough on rural schools
NCLB "highly qualified teacher" requirements create difficult staffing dilemmas, especially in mountain regions and Indian reservations... The Arizona Republic (Phoenix) (5/24/06)

What about us?
Currently under NCLB, states and schools are not required to include science assessments as part of the formula for determining AYP. Though no action can be taken on the Science Accountability Act until Congress begins work to reauthorize NCLB next year, read the PDF about the proposed bill to phase in annual science assessments for students in grades 3-8 beginning in 2009-2010... NSTA (5/23/06)

Lawmakers give thumbs up
Though student scores on national measures have not changed, lawmakers feel that NCLB has been a positive force in school reform. Testing requirements expand to include science in 2008... TIME (5/22/06)

Comparisons on student results on NAEP and state exam results reveal disparities
Do differences raise questions regarding validity at both state and national levels? Read on... The Boston Globe/Associated Press (3/3/06)

Garbage in, garbage out?
Not his words, but the question Thomas Toch of the Education Sector poses still remains: Are NCLB requirements forcing states to have tests developed so rapidly and with so little thought that they cannot trust the results to help inform practice or to reliably determine levels of student achievement? Read the report at the Education Sector.

No dice in for NEA and Michigan
In response to the National Education Association and the state of Michigan's claim that the federal government imposed illegal unfunded mandates on states and local school districts, a federal judge writes, "If Congress meant to prohibit 'unfunded mandates' in the NCLB, it would have phrased (the law) to say so clearly and unambiguously." How will Connecticut fare in its suit? Stateline.org (11/30/05)

Individual rather than group?
A new NCLB program will allow some states an opportunity to measure student progress based on individual instead of group performance. Read as Hawaii considers applying... Honolulu Star-Bulletin (11/23/05)

Demand rises, incentives loom, and loopholes abound
What is highly qualified? State officials grapple with recruiting challenges and NCLB's upcoming Summer 2006 deadline that all core academic teachers be highly qualified... U.S. News and World Report (9/12/05)

New rules for military recruiters
Seattle's School Board sets new requirements for recruiters that visit campuses in their district, including wearing uniforms, equal visitation to all high schools, and the need to make appointments in advance. Violators could be banned from schools, show up in uniform and visit all high schools with the same frequency... Seattle Post-Intelligencer (9/8/05)

So what is highly qualified?
The debate continues among state leaders, NCLB proponents, and those being judged -- teachers. Read on... USA TODAY/Associated Press (8/22/05)

Achievement gap a problem in U.K. also
And it's being targeted. Through mentoring and tutoring, British school leaders hope to raise black male students' test scores... The Guardian (London) (8/21/05)

Discontent grows
As many as five new states -- Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, and Virginia -- could join states (Connecticut, Utah, and Colorado) that have already planned lawsuits or passed state legislation countering NCLB... The Christian Science Monitor (8/19/05)

As bar is raised, more schools miss the mark
As states raise student expectations as much as 10% toward 2014 achievement goals, ten states show increase in the number of schools that land on the "needs improvement" list... Stateline.org (8/12/05)

Truth in recruiting?
What do you need to know about NCLB's requirement that schools provide students' contact information to military recruiters? Is it your kid? Read on... The Christian Science Monitor (8/18/05)

On going forward...
The Economist suggests that President Bush's plans for education are proving to be successful, and that these successes pose new challenges for Democrats and for those in the education establishment that have resisted reform thus far... The Economist (7/21/05)

Department of Ed seeks to provide tutoring guidance
New nonregulatory guidelines may help districts ascertain extent of appropriateness with which outside tutoring agencies are handling their tasks... San Francisco Chronicle/Associated Press (6/13/05)

Can a state force English-only testing any longer?
A number of California schools plan to find out. They are filing suit against the state of California, which only allows testing in English. NCLB conversely contains a provision that allows schools to test students in their native languages for up to five years... San Diego Union-Tribune (6/1/05)

Foreign vs. Failing. That is the question...
So, is it okay for foreign tutors to get NCLB monies, or should it go to teachers at the same school who managed to make the "needs improvement" list to begin with? Read on... The Christian Science Monitor (5/23/05)

NEA Sues
The National Education Association files suit along with school districts in Texas, Vermont, and Michigan. The purpose? Force the federal government to pay costs of the NCLB regulations so we don't have to pay for it with our tax dollars. What? Is there something we're missing? Read more... National Education Association (4/20/05)

Spellings announces more "common sense" approach to No Child Left Behind
Spellings plans to stay true to NCLB's mission to raise achievement, but take into account each state's unique situation. The special education regulations are the first example of new policy. Read more... Whitehouse News (Washington, DC) (4/7/05)

NCLB funding tutoring services in India?
The ultimate outsource... Sify (New Delhi/Chennai) (3/8/05)

Fixing the formula in California
California and federal officials close in on compromise that reduces the number of schools that don't meet the mark. Still, not enough "subgroups" are taking the test. Read about the arrangement... San Francisco Chronicle (San Francisco) (3-9-05)

And Bill Gates has the answers
In a speech at the National Governors Association education summit in Washington, Bill Gates blasts U.S. education, saying it was "obsolete" and that he was "ashamed" and "appalled"... The Seattle Times (2/27/05)

State legislatures criticize NCLB, think they have answers
The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) seeks more flexibility, claiming NCLB hinders improvement efforts. In contrast, this collection of legislators and their task force co-chairs—Senators from NY and MN—think they have the answers. Read about the group, get their report, and read their recommendations... NCSL (Washington/Denver) (2/23/05)

It's the budget, stupid...
We've heard the budget complaints about NCLB numerous times, but read this opinion by Robert Gordon of the Center for American Progress... CBS News (2/15/05)

Margaret Spellings sworn in as new U.S. Secretary of Education
Bush: "She will be an outstanding Secretary of Education." Read the President's speech... Whitehouse News (Washington, DC) (1/31/05)

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