No child Left Behind

They should stop the program and have a forum in each state where teachers, parents, and local officials get together and discuss what they really need in their schools.And when they have their list, each state's Congressman should bring in the list to the National Board of Education.Since every state is different, there will be some that need more money and others better school buildings.Then when all public schools have the resources, then you can set a basic test that all students need to pass.It will show that the student learned the math and English he/she will need. But if the student doesn't pass the test, the school doesn't lose money, instead the student gets a tutor so he/she can pass the second time he/she takes the test. The way it is set up now, teachers are just teaching to the test.because the school can't afford to lose money, they are forgetting about teaching the student anything that isn't on the test.And the student isn't learning how to learn. So in 5-10 years from now,we will have new graduates that don't know how to learn, a trait you will need to keep a job.

A friend of mine is a high school teacher and she tells me another problem is they do not give the parents any responsibility to make sure the children are doing their homework. My friend just had to give out diffencies and mover half of the class if flucking because they do not do their homework. Most of the students today think they do not have to turn in their work. Where are the parents when their children are getting a D or F in a class? What are the parents doing to make their child study or make sure the child is doing all their homework? The highschool students today do not want to be involved in organizations, according to my friend the high school teacher.

I cannot remember where i saw this, but it's not just the regular schools that are cutting things like that. There was this plan a few years ago for colleges & universities are also cutting required electives out of their curricila, such as the majors that do not require it, mathematics & lab science course requirements are being reduced - courses of study like history (or some other social science) & arts/music or other humanities. Then in other majors like engineering & physics & mathematics, social science & humanities electives requirements have been reduced. I can't remember where I saw & read this. I only remember "dumbing down" as the partial title of the report/article. I also don't know if this actually went into effect.

I thought it started before that... My kids graduated in 2002 and 2004 and I remember protesting it when they were in grade school. What they've basically done around here is "dumb" the schools down so that everyone is assured of passing. It really hurt my oldest who is pretty bright and applied himself. There was no challenge for him at all. And I guess if you think about it, it hurt my youngest too who didn't try any harder than he had to because he could skate by without having to think. I think it's a huge disservice to our children. If they had implemented it the way it was supposed to be designed it would be great! They were SUPPOSED to have extra programs for struggling children to get them up to speed. Instead they've just brought the standard down so everyone can meet it. We call it the "Every Child Left Behind" program.

I read somewhere recently that 70% of all kids who graduate from high school are not ready to go onto college. And that most kids spend between one and 2 semesters taking remedial courses, at great cost to the parents to learn what they should have learned in college. The solution is the parents and teachers must work as a team, that means the parent must make sure that all work is done and the kids study and get enough sleep and are ready for school. The teacher must contact a parent as soon as there is a problem, not wait until the end of the marking period, the semester, the child is failing. They must set goals and make sure the kids work to meet them. Unless everyone is committed it won't work. We have to find a way to motivate kids to work too.

It is a poorly written law that ensures that all children will fall behind! They no longer worry about moving kids beyond what is adequate. Crazy!

We have the same thing in the UK, Every Child Matters. Yet again another government run scheme that places targets above the education of children. The division between schools is growing as parents can choose which school they want their kids to go to instead of sending them to their local school which was the policy years ago. Now we have schools that the middle classes have taken over, while working class children are going to schools that are failing. The emphasis is now on exam results which does not always reflect the diversity in alot of schools who may have a higher number of kids with English as an additional language or kids with special needs. Most kids in the UK are being taught a government curriculum that is boring and their whole school learning is based around them being taught to pass a test instead of enjoying their learning and becoming critical thinkers, which we so need in our society nowadays. Pressure is constantly being put on them, kids in the UK are the most tested compared to many other countries. We are letting our kids down with this system and there is a high percentage that are leaving school without the basic skills in reading and writing. Teachers should be given back their power and the government should step back, this would make such a difference to the teachers morale and the kids.. I am training to become a teacher but I am thinking twice about it now as I hate the system the way it is. I do work in education and the incentives given out to teachers is laughable. They are not a respected profession like years ago and this is very sad. For the sake of our kids future and that of the next workforce, something has to change, we are loosing a generation of scientists, artists and inspired adults.