Children left behind

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by on August 2, 2011  •  Permalink
Posted in Schools
Posted by Nancy Oates on August 2, 2011

http://chapelhillwatch.com/2011/08/02/children-left-behind/

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5 Comments

  1. John Kramer

     /  August 2, 2011

    I am so glad to see there are still some things that are Bush’s fault. I was really starting to miss him!

  2. DOM

     /  August 2, 2011

    Mr. Kramer –

    Regarding President Bush, please don’t forget two unsuccessful wars and an economy teetering on collapse.

  3. Terri Buckner

     /  August 2, 2011

    I could not disagree with you more on this, Nancy. I’m not a big defender of NCLB, but I also don’t equate NCLB with high expectations. High expectations are not the heart and soul of NCLB; testing is. And there’s generally a huge gap between what many people can do on tests and what they can do in practice. The way successful teachers work with high expectations is to care enough about individual students that they spend the time and energy required to make sure each one meets his/her potential, regardless of any personal challenges. They teach to the student, not the test. In public education lingo that is called differentiation. But you can’t legislate that kind of commitment so instead of getting the belief that every child can be successful in their own unique way and the practices that support that goal, we got a bunch of tests that act in total opposition to the goal.

    What you are saying sounds like support for tracking to me. Not good. That doesn’t mean kids shouldn’t have the option to take vocational classes. But the system shouldn’t dictate that as their only choice. Aptitude tests aren’t much more reliable than EOGs when it comes to determining someone’s future.

  4. Nancy Oates

     /  August 2, 2011

    I’m not advocating tracking. The job market has room for many people who do not have college degrees. Why not take the stigma away from those jobs by encouraging acceptance in school that not everyone has to be college bound?

  5. John Kramer

     /  August 2, 2011

    Dear Dom, I will take teetering on the brink of collapse over the current freefall and collapse.

    And if NCLB is about test scores then it is about expecting high test scores, ie high expectations, how could one possibly reason otherwise. Is Terri suggesting there are no expectations as to scores? Oh please!

    George Bush, 2012. Either one is fine with me.