digg

Join DiggAbout

Discover and share the best of the web!
Learn more about Digg by taking the tour.

No Child Left Behind has actually SLOWED student progress

eurekalert.org — As Congress reviews federal efforts to boost student performance, new research published in Educational Researcher (ER) reports that progress in raising test scores was stronger before No Child Left Behind was approved in 2002, compared with the four years following enactment of the law.

Bury
show profanity settings
expand all
  • vertinox, on 10/10/2007, -3/+140Doh! Maybe we should have left this power to the state governments since each state has its own needs. An across the board solution for everyone won't work.
    • OneHine, on 10/10/2007, -9/+27Wow, who would have guessed? This is as completely unexpected as the idea that setting an incompetent political crony at the head of FEMA wouldn't help people. Or the idea that faith-based initiatives would result in favoring certain religious positions over others, thus violating the First Amendment. I'd better vote for Bush again--these mistakes just could never have been anticipated and I'm SURE he won't make any other eensy-weensy little errors on his watch.

      /neo-con
      • capiCrimm, on 10/10/2007, -8/+14you realize Kennedy was a major sponsor?

        Moving it to the state doesn't help. The system is flawed, and we need to do away with "school" altogether. It's a relic from the Industrial age.
        • Audacitor, on 10/10/2007, -1/+10I totally agree. Our current system of education is just plain crappy.

          But it's probably not going to go away. To many idiot parents in the world who can't see what is the best way to go.
        • kuzotz, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4I agree what worked for the baby boomers sure as hell won't work for Generation Y(current young adults and teens), and generation Z(current infants and children.). The world has changed waaay too much.
      • Rahodeb, on 10/10/2007, -2/+12And what are we going to replace "school" with? I'ts easy to say something sucks, how about you tell us what would be better, because I'm pretty sure kids staying home and watching tv all day won't help anything.
        • p0tent1al, on 10/10/2007, -14/+7ANYTHING would be better. With logic like yours, no wonder US is falling behind, I mean for ***** sake seriously. And people wonder why coming generations are becoming less aware, less informed, and less intelligent.

          The first step is identifying the problem. Once a problem is openly identified, a solution will become evident. Anything is better at this point.

          It was a huge sigh of relief when I finally left high school, because I knew that was when my true learning would begin. I started to begin getting disgusted in high school because I wasn't being taught what I should be taught, most of which I learned will never have a direct application on my life, EVER. And this is coming from a techie, who is a web designer, who is interested in politics.

          The school system is 12 years used of your whole life, basically used to learn what OTHER PEOPLE think you should learn. So much for a free country, I was a slave for 12 years of my life, learning about the Periodic time table, Shakespeare, Pythagorean Theorum, and other nonsense I will never use for the rest of my life.
          • p0tent1al, on 10/10/2007, -6/+4Please, go ahead and digg me down. The article speaks for itself.
          • EntangledPhysx, on 10/10/2007, -1/+6you're ***** retarded. Alot of that math stuff is help you learn logic, shakespear, etc is to help teach you about art and creativity... the classes dont teach you stuff you must know in order to suceed in life, but builds your character and skills you need later on life. Sorry, but you failed at life.
          • Ysaric, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6You don't even realize why you are getting thumbs down--it's not because of what you are being taught, its how you are being taught. To say that under some magical new system you wouldn't have to learn math?? You would probably have to learn *more* math, it's just that it would be taught better, with more accountability, if it were part of, say, a privatized system. Just because how you learn changes doesn't mean that kids won't have to read the classics any more . . . do you think this is Lord of the Flies? (If you can remember such a "useless" reference)
          • Rahodeb, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1"The first step is identifying the problem. Once a problem is openly identified, a solution will become evident."

            just not by uneducated jackasses like yourself, who only know how to bitch and will never actually come up with a good solution. We'll leave that to those who didn't see the periodic table, Shakespeare, or other "nonsense" as not worth their time. funny how you say my attitude is why the US is failing, as opposed to your attitude that you shouldn't be taught things you don't think you'll use. How do you suppose we'll get ahead in the sciences without teaching the periodic table? I mean, we don't want to waste anyones time, right?
        • capiCrimm, on 10/10/2007, -4/+5"because I'm pretty sure kids staying home and watching tv all day won't help anything."

          I disagree. If people weren't naturally inclined to learn we wouldn't have a society as it is. People like to experiment and play, it's our nature. Unschooling, for example would be an improvement. We need fewer machines and more creative minds. Let the Chinese turn out mindless workers, I'd rather America do less of that.
          • Rahodeb, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1I'm all for a better, more hands on, and creative system, but ending the school system isn't the way. As for natural curiosity, people need to be exposed to things to find their interest. I'm greatful for having to learn a lot of that seemingly useless stuff, because I did end up using a good amount of it. In addition, the stuff I didn't use at least gave me a better understanding of the world I live in.
        • sumasshu, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3@capiCrimm: Most kids aren't going to read a mathematics book for fun though (especially the more advanced mathematics). And because kids lack the foresight to see that mathematics is extremely important for a future in anything technology related, there will be a whole generation of uneducated children living in their parents basements, creating cool little gadgets out of tinker toys and legos. (the same could be said about any subject, really) School is necessary. The way it's being run needs to change, however.
          • capiCrimm, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I agree they will end up in their parents basement. The current system rewards the school system. Everything else being equal, if two people, one with a college degree and one without, were to apply for a job which one would get it?

            On the part of tinker-toys, I really don't see the problem. Like I said, I'd rather focus on nurturing creativity then producing factory workers. From what I've read of surveys very few workers feel their potential is being maxed, and that seems wrong. Why is it that we separate work from play? We delude people into thinking that work is some evil thing. We make them hate their jobs, and make them inefficacent. What's worse is that people learn to associate thier work with pain, and in the end we get a population of zombies watching tv and doing nothing.

            So yeah, everything you said is true, but is it so bad?
    • afruff23, on 10/10/2007, -11/+4I'm no advocate for NCLB, but you are wrong about leaving it to states. That's what NCLB ACTUALLY does. Maryland has the HSA test, while Michigan has its own test. I think a good solution would be to leave it in place, but promise scholarships to top-scorers.
      • 0xbadfood, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6Um, no. "Leaving it to the states" would be not having federal regulations that interfere with local schools at all.
    • noahhoward, on 10/10/2007, -0/+39It's called 'No Child Too Far Out Front' get it right people.
      • rabiddachshund, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4More like no teacher left standing
      • sweitx, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Its also called "No Child Gets Ahead"
    • aerogant, on 10/10/2007, -1/+24Our students went from 1st place in the world before the department of education, to 21st place today 50 years of the department of education.
      • domlachowicz, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2Post hoc, ergo propter hoc.
      • MrGency, on 10/10/2007, -1/+6To be realistic it probably has more to do with other countries' departments of education catching up and passing by than to any obvious deficiency of our own department. No Child Left Behind was well intentioned, no one set out to make American schools worse, it's failures should serve to underscore the complexity of the problem.
        • aerogant, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1That's true but you also have to take into account what the students intelligence was back then versus now, and there isn't a lot of statistical data available about that. But on the other hand, currently home schooled students outperform both public and private school in standardized tests. The cost it is to the family is greater though, when the parent that is the teacher would normally make a lot of money doing another job. If that cost isn't high (if that parent is normally a home maker or has more flexible hours), then it is actually cheaper then public school. The benefit of home school vs the others, is that the others treat students uniformly, when students vary a lot. You have to be really smart to be pushed ahead, or really dumb to be pushed behind, otherwise you are just herded and forced to learn at uniform pace, about things you don't necessarily understand or like. I'd rather subsidize home schooling...
      • hoovcluck, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Unlike the rest of the world, we include the handicapped and disabled students in our educational statistics, that's why those statistics are misleading.
    • ruz322, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4I wish I could digg your comment 30 + times...
    • brundlefly76, on 10/10/2007, -3/+1OMG WTF with everyone thinking that the country's problems are all solvable through the transition of state control just because you like RP digg posts - UNEDUCATED SHEEP!
      Havent you people ever seen the map of red vs blue states?
      Now do you really want to revert more budget and control to *state* government?

      Basically what you are saying is that your state will be fine so screw all the minority with half a brain who live in Florida because they will be completely ***** and can move.

      Its basically just taking a problem which can be mostly solved with a quality federal election and giving up, saying that half the country can go to hell for all you care, cause you'll be OK.

      Oh and ***** America too because we will all be much happier with bias faction.
      • Ysaric, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3What is so stupendously stupid about your comment is that when "the other political party" is in charge and has national power, then it isn't just one state's citizens who are *****, it is the entire country. Democrats were by and large happy as clams when Roe v. Wade came down, but if Bush and the Republicans get another Presidential term (or two), will you still think it was a good idea to give the federal government the sole power to decide the abortion question for the entire country?

        Federalism is smart, which is why the Founding Fathers, who were, surprisingly enough, a collection of pretty smart guys, built it into the Constitution. As a citizenry we have been ridiculously lazy at allowing government representatives and officials usurp its restrictions.

        Uneducated sheep, indeed.
        • Touchet, on 01/14/2008, -0/+0LOl, we are not a true republic really, we are somewhere in between. If you paid attention in history and government you'd know that. Our government is like a bipolar child. On the one hand, the Republic is set up to make sure the MINORITIES, yes you heard me right, always have a voice. On the other hand, Federalism is there to give some autonomy to local issue, because at the time the constitution was written, communication was poor and the government wouldn't be able to respond in time. So, its really a balancing act between minority and majority. The PURPOSE is to stay in balance. You guys arguing on here is a validation that everything is working as intended. Democrats against Republicans. Majority against Minority.
  • miriclaire, on 10/10/2007, -3/+223"No Child Left Behind" policy means standards are lowered. They teach to the lowest common denominator, are afraid of competition, tests and failures. Smart kids will be bored, unmotivated and will hate the school experience. Kids will not be taught to think or reason , but "cooperate" and team-build. Sounds good--for basketball. Not for learning.
    • FeloniusMonkey, on 10/10/2007, -2/+6Well put! If I'm going under the knife for critical surgery, I find comfort in knowing that surgeon had to be at his/her best to get where he/she is!
      • hoserjoe, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8Don't forget that at least half the surgeons graduated in the bottom half of the class
      • kittybit83, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4but remember, always demand a generator check before you go under the knife... or atleast make sure they have lots of cell phones :P
    • gta3mobster, on 10/10/2007, -0/+12At least with the basketball you can continue to improve a skill the more you work at it... In comparison to being assigned work that you already know how to complete.

      I did hate my high school experience. I was bored and unmotivated.

      My last year I missed over 40 days of school 2nd semester and still got a B average. During my days off I slept until noon, then either read books on networking/programming or fiddled around on Ubuntu. I have to say that was much more enjoyable than listening to the teacher drone for 50 minutes. The most pathetic part is even when I did show up for school it was a waste of my time. All I did was hand in the assignments (which didn't require you to attend class to complete. Well, I knew the topics at least) and stare at the floor.

      The problem with the "advanced" courses schools offer is there is way too much homework. I don't understand why people have to do the same thing one hundred times over. Perhaps they could encourage students to understand the work instead of assigning tedious assignments.
      • RyeBrye, on 10/10/2007, -12/+4I can tell you were trying to sound smart - but you kind of lost your credibility when you admitted you were a Ubuntu user.
        • alexanEmpire, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Leik OMG he 1s n0t leet and uses Gentoo! What a n00b!

          In all seriousness,RyBrye, it's people like you that make me hate the Linux Community.
      • Terh, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2Lack of motivation isn't a result of NCLB. It's been around a long time, and people constantly blame lack of challenge for it, when really, it's lack of discipline and contagious poor attitude that have been around in the youth of our society for a long time.

        I doubt NCLB is any good for our education system, but let's not go over the top with the blame game here.
    • t3hprogrammer, on 10/10/2007, -4/+4I used what I learned in math class to help me do more in programming. I may have been bored, but I knew that I could use what I learned when I got home. It encouraged me to learn more advanced math topics and try to improve my understanding of what I already knew.
    • jasonherron, on 08/10/2008, -0/+10Thus, why I'm in private school. :)

      Seriously, school is useful, but not when you're lowering the bar to 3rd grade level stuff for high school students. There are people who are 16 who still can barely read in some of the high schools near me... That's just sad!

      This way, not one child is left behind-- they all progress, but none of them can do anything...
    • kuzotz, on 10/10/2007, -3/+2thank god I graduated from a Charter school that used the Turkish curriculum.
    • krinthekuz, on 09/16/2008, -4/+9NCLB essentially created a national standard for examinations via standardized tests. i fail to see how making everyone in the same grade across the nation take the exact same test is discriminatory. everyone keeps saying that the standards are set for the lowest common denominator, but that would mean that kids are dominating the tests but are still generally incompetent. however, that's the exact OPPOSITE of the facts -- that the standardized tests are dominating children because the teachers can't prepare the students adequately.

      i'm not saying the system isn't flawed, but national standardized testing is a good thing. no matter what school you go to, you take the same tests. it's not a matter of going to a school or taking a class where the teacher gives retardedly easy tests (which is often the basis for taking certain classes in undergrad and grad school).

      i was in the international baccalaureate program in high school that effectively consists of INTERNATIONAL standardized tests. here's more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_baccalaureate . this program is international standardized testing that WORKS. and in case you didn't know, most state universities will accept IB credits as college testing credits. I walked into undergrad with 33 credits.

      as much as i'd love to jump on the "bush is a ***** douchebag" bandwagon (because he is), you're all being ***** whiny tossers. your argument makes no sense, and there is no factual basis for your arguments whatsoever. now bury me, because digg's unofficial laws state that you cannot ever defend bush, no matter how meritorious your argument is.
      • 0xbadfood, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4The reason national standardized tests (tied to funding, especially) are stupid is this: Homogeneity is bad. If your students are required to do well on the test to keep your funding, you have to teach to the test. It destroys diversity in education. Forcing everyone to know exactly the same subset of things is incredibly dangerous, because it makes it far more likely that *no one* will know the much larger number of things that weren't on the test. Some group of people will be in an environment where just one of them will need to know something important, and none of them will, because they all had the same basic education. A student will be particularly apt at one form of learning, and instead of taking advantage of that, teachers will have to spend all day using other methods because it's needed for the test. It's bad news.
        • Bajeda, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1IB is much different from say, the AP system. Look at the French Baccalaureate as well. Standardized tests can work. Just because everyone taking a class has the same test doesnt mean everyone will be taking the same classes, there are lots of options to chose from in IB. Not to mention it actually encourages critical thinking and being able to express yourself as opposed to the multiple choice and fact regurgitation of the AP tests.
      • snoolyagain, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0nclb mandates testing. there is no support to teaching materials. no one knows what's on the tests. that's why it is bogus. the tests are disconnected and it is stressful to be hounded about something when there is no support material. it is clown routine. it also feeds money to the private test companies as if they are the center of world. meanwhile the students eat processed cardboard for lunch and can't go outside for fresh air or sunshine.
      • doti, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2dugg your comment down for innacurate. NCLB does not implement a national testing standard. Each state makes their own standards. You could fail in Massachusetts (state with the toughest standards), but pass in Tennesee(state with the lowest standards).
      • Liam76, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2"Forcing everyone to know exactly the same subset of things is incredibly dangerous, because it makes it far more likely that *no one* will know the much larger number of things that weren't on the test. "

        NCLB only tests math and english. Which are things EVERYONE should know. Learning the basics in those is a cornerstone to virtually every other worthwhile thing there is to study, and if a school can't teach those basics it is failing.
      • 0xbadfood, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1"NCLB only tests math and english. Which are things EVERYONE should know. Learning the basics in those is a cornerstone to virtually every other worthwhile thing there is to study, and if a school can't teach those basics it is failing."

        There is a big difference between knowing "math and english" and knowing trig formulas and Shakespeare. So guess what happens if they put Shakespeare on the test but not Orwell, or trig but not calculus. Grammar but not spelling. The teachers have to have their students do well on the test, so instead of having students who know trig and calculus, you get students who know trig *very* well but have never even heard of calculus. You get students who know trig and grammar but not biology, because it's better for the school to spend three times as long on what's on the test and throw everything out the window. You get homogeneity in education, and it's dangerous.
    • krinthekuz, on 09/16/2008, -2/+3and i forgot to mention... my high school ranks repeatedly in the top 10 high schools in the nation. it was #7 last year... and it's a public school. standardized testing can and does work. people are just pissed because it creates a small fish-big pond system. the fact of the matter is that in a class of 20 or 30 students, you can be a ***** idiot and still be the best in the class (thus get an A). you can't do that on a national scale.
      • Terh, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4Could you explain, in the midst of all the dick waving, how your amazing school and IB program forgot to teach you proper capitalization, proper use of ellipses, and proper separation of paragraphs to avoid writing a wall of rant?

        Honestly, how the hell do people come in here trying to make intelligent points about education looking like they don't even have a GED?
    • loveandrockets, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Yes, let's take kids who aren't doing well in school, in fact they don't want to be there, and teach them how to pass a test for 50 minutes at a stretch. Because that's what underperforming schools do, they teach the test. The administrators and teachers just want to keep their jobs

      And, there is rampant cheating going on. In low-performing schools, many kids will have a 10 question run of perfect answers. Hmmmmm. How did that happen? Teacher wants to keep job maybe?

      The whole thing is worthless. If kids can't read bring out "Horton hears a Who" or play word games or just ***** anything so people can at least read when they graduate.

      • theonlywizdum, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0I'm a senior in high school. In our Sophomore year, we had to take a pre-SAT, all the kids who scored below a certain score on that test, were put in a class that taught you how to beat the system.
    • AllanX, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7Sure, sucks for creating the next generation of scientists and engineers, but GREAT for preparing young squads of future soldiers. And that's the only pressing need the US has anymore. Right?
      • hoovcluck, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Wasn't it John effing Kerry that said if you are stupid you will end up a soldier in Iraq?
    • beerden, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Montessori schools operate on the complete opposite philosophy of No Child Left Behind, and look at the brilliance and competence of kids graduating from those schools. Likewise, many home schooled kids are far more competent than public school educated kids - but who can afford to put their kids in either one? No Child Left Behind is designed to keep poor people stupid so that the gap between the classes can widen even more.
    • iceperson, on 10/10/2007, -1/+3Sounds pretty much exactly how things were when I was in school.... 15 ***** years BEFORE no child left behind. Oh, and last I checked correlation != causation

      There's nothing to see here, move along...
    • hydroplane, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6Principle Skinner: [sighs] I don't have any opinions anymore"All I know is that no one is better than anyone else, and everyone is the best at everything."
    • tonaros, on 11/14/2007, -0/+1The less educated our kids are, the less likely they are to apply critical thinking to decisions such as who our next president should be. Worked for Bush.
  • Yamoth, on 10/10/2007, -6/+25wow, no one would of guessed that.
    • santaliqueur, on 10/10/2007, -0/+28would OF? A product of no child left behind, commenting on its failures. Delicious.
    • CannedMango, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I know you're being sarcastic, but some people don't realize this. John Kerry stated this many times in the presidential debates that No Child Left Behind had major flaws and would actually reduce child literacy in the US. Bush Co. always labels their programs with titles that sound great, implementations that are horrible and then tout the title of the program as if they've actually done something. The sad thing is is that people fall for it every time (not the sort of people who frequent digg, but more like the sort of people who stand outside of the mall before it opens, waiting... waiting... waiting...)
  • chi1thook, on 10/10/2007, -37/+6Right before the election the progressive nuts bombard digg with the same repetitive stories, Bush bad, anyone that disagrees with progressives is a neo-con, neo-cons are bad, progressives are so smart, progressives have so much common sense, Israel is responsible for all the problems in the mideast, jews that support israel are bad. Anyone that isn't obsessive progressive will get sick of it, you'll see.
    • MasterThief117, on 10/10/2007, -3/+18Right before the elections, we have jackasses like you who think they know everything.
    • izzybr, on 10/10/2007, -1/+11Oh...so everything else Bush has done has been a smashing success right? And the neo-cons had everything right?

      Do you pay attention to the world around you, or do you just listen to the standard right wing talking points.
    • tehpwnrate, on 10/10/2007, -0/+16This isn't just a Bush-bad article. Remember that there were some prominent dems behind this too, like Kennedy.
    • iamnotbatman, on 10/10/2007, -1/+6I think what you mean is, before the election all the horrifically bad and corrupt decisions made by this administration years ago start to bear fruit and the evidence begins to tumble in just how right the democrats were when they opposed the relevant legislation.
    • fantasticFlan, on 10/10/2007, -0/+9Right before the election an election is about to be held. When's the election?
    • diggbot7, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8Wah, wah, wah - Bush isn't so terrible - wah,wah wah.

      Tell it to the Devil, moron.
    • tucsonsun13, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Who said anything about being a progressive???
    • Cmonkey67, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Typical.

      People start trying to talk about an issue that is getting worse and is very important and some idiot has to go on some partisan tirade about how this is a political attack without realizing that people are trying to sift through the rubble and find out what went wrong. I bet you would show up to a car crash screaming "THIS IS BILL CLINTON'S FAULT!".

      How about you stick to the ***** subject.
  • insomniac8400, on 10/10/2007, -3/+93DUH. All no child left behind does is punish the smart kids. It takes away their advanced classes and forces them into the classroom with the idiots that ask so many questions no learning even takes place.
    • afruff23, on 10/10/2007, -1/+6In Maryland, it is nothing like what you described. The only difference is taking standardized tests during one week for different core subjects (algebra, geometry, biology, etc.). The schools choice to place or not place smart and dumb kids together has nothing to do with NCLB.
    • davidlow, on 10/10/2007, -2/+18It's in the name, People: When you don't leave someone behind it means you stop and wait for him. If there's a whole group everybody waits. Everyone only progresses as fast as the slowest person. They certainly named this law correctly.
    • jasonherron, on 08/10/2008, -1/+4"It takes away their advanced classes and forces them into the classroom with the idiots that ask so many questions no learning even takes place."

      Welcome to my life...

      BTW: The teachers hate it just as much as we do.
    • itomato, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1That's just American Pubic School, unless you're in the suburbs (but only for 6-10 years), or a Magnet or Montessori school.

      Private Schools have to be similarly treacherous. Nuns, Priests, thought and behavior patterns dictated by one unsavory book or another.

      Bleh. It's no wonder we're out of the running in education.
    • Kazanoe, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1THANKYOU.
      I HATE people who ask question after question, especially when the teacher just explained it, but they missed it because they were listening to their mp3 players or talking to friends.
      Honestly, people who don't pay attention shouldn't have the right to ask questions. Or vote, for that matter.
    • hoovcluck, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1That is a very good point, the amount of money spent on the students on the lower end of the achievement scale is way more than the gifted students.
  • MasterThief117, on 10/10/2007, -2/+56I'm still in school, so I'm living it.
    Just like everyone else, I ***** hate it. All it does is slows down learning and makes things more complicated. Every teacher I have asked also said they hate it.
    • b3mus3d, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5As a British schoolchild, I truly feel bad for you :(
    • AeonTorpor, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8I'm living with it too. The current high school grads are now 18-ish and working retail. The amount of complete tards that i work with is just astronomical.
  • Mishka, on 10/10/2007, -0/+31In the words of George Carlin "It wasn't that long ago that we were trying to give kids a 'Head Start.' 'Head Start,' 'Left Behind,' someones losing ground here."
    • FeloniusMonkey, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1Indeed... He said it FIRST :)
  • cactus476, on 10/10/2007, -7/+12O RLY?
  • xShad0w, on 10/10/2007, -12/+2I am one of the kids (don't mean to brag) that could go waaay farther IF i wasn't stuck in rooms with idiots, granted we do have honors classes at my school, thank god!, but still I'm taking a chemistry summer coarse and everyone is a freakin idiot there, ridiculous that dumb people would pay 600 to get ahead when you learn faster and its more work, just don't get it, this is a stupid act anyway, it should be takin away
    • Kypt, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4"thank god!, but still I'm taking a chemistry summer _____coarse_____ and everyone is a freakin idiot there, ridiculous"

      *cough*
      ;)
    • segfaultxr7, on 10/10/2007, -1/+10Sorry if I come across as being coarse, but I think you could benefit from an English course.
    • expertninja, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7Take a summer coarse in English next please.
    • TwinTurboMike, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Thanks to our poor education system, things like spelling and grammar have been all but completely *taken* away it seems. ;-)
    • slicerace, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2What is a "summer coarse"? Should it be "takin away"?
    • izzybr, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Wow. Interesting. Well hopefully you will get fartherer with your summer coarse
    • Maarek, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Maybe you can pull a few strings and get into Costco U.

      They will learn you real good on English.
    • Cmonkey67, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1LOL
  • Pilot85, on 10/10/2007, -5/+4ahem.

    Duh.
  • Urusai, on 10/10/2007, -8/+30I said this from day one. A simple rule of thumb is that if Bush proposes or supports a plan, it sucks. This is no different than Nixon's health plan being a Trojan horse for ruining health care. NCLB is a Trojan horse for creating Fox News viewers.
    • diggumjonez, on 10/10/2007, -1/+10they're trying to digg you down, but you're on the money. take a look at most of Bush's plans and proposals and you'll find the actual outcome was the exact opposite of the family-friendly "name." No Child Left Behind, Clean Skies Act, Whatever the debacle over the alaskan wildlife refuge drilling was called, Operation Enduring Freedom.

      and on and on. Please supply some counter-examples where Bush was a major player or supporter of a bill that hasn't been named some ***** soundbite that actually accomplished, as its primary goal, that same function.
  • Darkstarter, on 10/10/2007, -2/+14No child left a dime.
  • izzybr, on 10/10/2007, -6/+4Can't wait the hear the fox news coverage of another smashing Bush victory.
    They got bin laden, they stopped all the terrorists, our gas is now cheaper, our economy is better, we have more jobs, our program to teach kids how to take standardized tests is working, and the tax cuts didn't totally benefit the rich...
    Oh wait, today is opposite day
  • JimXugle, on 10/10/2007, -2/+19As a current high school student here in the USA....

    No ***** Sherlock.
    • AeonTorpor, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3I'm surprised you know who Sherlock is. Wait... do you?
      • JimXugle, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Yes, I do... however not from school.
  • cosmotic, on 10/10/2007, -3/+17Who else things its funny that all these 'students' are commenting on this saying how they are smart and in advanced classes etc, yet they can't even spell/use grammar/type?
    • DooM, on 10/10/2007, -1/+15I 'thing' its very funny -- you'd think you'd double-check a post of that kind of indictment for typos...
    • miriclaire, on 10/10/2007, -3/+11It's not funny, it's sad. The kids posting here is a GOOD sign --they have confidence to speak and express themselves, that they actually CARE about news sites, and have an opinion. The SAD part is, they are unwitting victims of the "no child" policy in that they can SPEAK, but not WRITE their own language. Grammar, effective writing, spelling, phonics--not much emphasis put on these anymore. They're too busy with "child-centered", "hands-on" learning: everyone passing around a muffin and talking about their FEELINGS! Reason and analysis are too complex for the majority and its all about "Me Me ME and how "I feel".
    • SirGunslinger, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I'm so SMRT! Errr I mean SMART!
    • sweitx, on 10/10/2007, -1/+0They should adopt the asian system.
      If the kids don't learn, smack them.
      • ITpolitico, on 10/10/2007, -1/+0That system has proven to work. In my old high school, Asians comprised approximately 15% of the total student population. When I graduated, Asians were about 60-70% of the "Top 20" in the class for GPA.

        Your kid gets an A? Smack him for not getting an A+
        Your kid gets a B? Beat him with a stick for not getting an A+
        Your kid gets a C? Start considering adoption and/or murder
    • zihr, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1It's a little ironic, but since ability in spelling/grammar isn't really an indicator of other forms of intelligence, it isn't really a big deal.
    • worthone, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1So if you're really smart in, say, math you're supposed to know perfect grammar?

      Mind you, smartness comes in many packages.
  • PamalaLauren, on 10/10/2007, -1/+11This is why I plan to home school. And yes I'm getting a degree in Early Childhood Development so I'm prepared to teach.
    • Willface, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1get ready for your kids to be socially inept....the good news is that they might win the national spelling bee one day, but won't have any friends to celebrate with
  • NSResponder, on 10/10/2007, -2/+19What? A sweeping, ham-fisted, government initiative, carried out by incompetent bureaucrats has unintended consequences? Stop the presses! That's NEVER happened before!

    -jcr
  • dodger06, on 10/10/2007, -3/+1well i could have told them that...
  • bonesaw, on 10/10/2007, -3/+15As a conservative republican who doesn't back bush...Only one person on this mentioned that dems had a part in this as well? Digg makes everything into a partisan issue and inevitably boils down to fox news or bush bashing... I say you a-holes are guilty of what you claim fox news does...only sees what they want.
    • izzybr, on 10/10/2007, -8/+7Very typical of a Republican: Republicans introduce the bill, Republicans pass the bill, Republican president signs the bill, when it goes bad...blame the Democrats.
      • 0xbadfood, on 10/10/2007, -4/+4The fact that the Democrats wrote the bill is completely irrelevant. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.
      • neuropsychguy, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3NCLB is not at all a Republican thing. Pres. Bush worked with the Democrats to get it passed (but a lot of people forget that).
    • skydharma, on 10/10/2007, -2/+5Also, NCLB is a revamping of one that was written in 1965, when some of the most sweeping liberal legislation was written. There's lots to be said about the bill (and how it's probably one of the most un-conservative ever written - it's a huge expansion of federal power), but it's not like the Republicans dragged the Dems kicking and screaming on this one. It was a pretty bipartisan effort.

      If the Republicans were still Republicans, though, it never would have passed. Goldwater would be rolling in his grave.
  • FrankieB078, on 10/10/2007, -4/+6Due to everything I have read on this subject, NCLB is one of the worst systems I've seen and I am digging this first, and then reading the article.

    If that is Un-American please digg me down.
    • isellmacs, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I'm afraid that these days, that's VERY american - Vote first, read later. It worked for Bush, right?
  • aknappjr, on 10/10/2007, -7/+11Ron Paul was opposed. He rocks.
    • Cmonkey67, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Yeah I know, I can't wait til he rides in on his white horse with his shirt unbuttoned and his long flowing hair in the wind and he'll ride up to me and say "I'll save you from No Child Left Behind and the Iraq war and the destruction of your civil liberties and government pork and corruption and everything else the republican party has done to ***** this country up and I WILL SAVE THE GRAND OLD PARTY!" Then we'll ***** like rabbits.
  • clickmyface, on 10/10/2007, -1/+9I'm not surprised, this is not shocking, it's not new news. Teachers all over the place told this administration this was going to happen. It was clear right away that they were right.

    I use to be interested in politics a great deal, I had aspirations to perhaps do more than just vote, I use to watch the news, the daily show, and colbert. This guy in office is an idiot and I don't enjoy all the things I listed before because so much is about him and his *****.
    • RazielX, on 10/10/2007, -1/+3You're underestimating him. There's method in his madness. This is a move to keep America uninformed so him and his group (note I didn't say party, but just the people that agree with him from both major parties) would retain power and make money.

      At risk of sounding religious, the devil's greatest accomplishment was to make people believe he doesn't exist...
  • mbraynard, on 10/10/2007, -14/+5The headline is incorrect.

    It says that the act has SLOWED student progress, but the story says that student progress has slowed since the act was put in place. This doesn't mean that there is a causal relationship between the two.

    Alternative possibilities are multiple. Perhaps the conditions of the student body have changed in a way that hurts results (like a massive invasion of the school system by students who are from or whose parents are from a 3rd world nation and whom do not speak English). Or because more intelligent student's families are shifting out of testing and into either private schools or homeschooling. Another alternative is that the progress has slowed (note: it hasn't reversed) because of the law of diminishing returns.

    In truth, NCLB may have still contributed to student progress. In the article, one of the profs who did the study admitted "Federal activism may have helped to sustain the buoyancy in children’s math scores at the fourth-grade level, seen throughout the prior decade."

    Apparently logic - like the difference between a coincidental and causal relationship - was lost on the submitter and the hyenas jumping all over this story.

    What is so objectionable about the idea that the federal government requiring some kind of accountability for federal dollars given to state education systems? How often have stories about wasteful spending been posted here to much bellyaching and digging? Why does the education system get a pass?

    If anything, NCOA didn't go nearly far enough, allowing states to set their own lax standards and give failing schools multiple opportunities to fail before taking them over and giving parents the options to send their children to better schools.

    The best situation is to seperate government from education. But so long as the federales are going to be cutting checks, there must be accountability for those funds just as there must be with every other federal program.
    • DooM, on 10/10/2007, -3/+5Yeah, and if I shoot you in the head and you die it doesn't mean that you didn't die from something else first, but it's pretty friggin' likely that the bullet did it.
    • JSchroeder, on 10/10/2007, -0/+11I like how you start your comment by suggesting the slowed progress is because of the Mexicans. Very subtle. Nice touch.
      • Liam76, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2In all fairness when this this policy first came out there was a lot more "shielding" of ESL students from taking the tests, not it isn't the case. Many more students have tot ake the test than before.
    • appetite, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6Wait, so an action was put in place with no clear goal. The facts show that, as a nation, we have strayed farther away from that goal since that action was put in place. Now, you propose that we take MORE of that action. Sounds a bit like the war in Iraq. And a gambling addiction.
    • 1ShotJake, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1It is in my personal belief that you are missing the intended point of this "educational" program. In the hopes that this initiative was in fact intended to create a better educated American public through public schooling, it apparently has not accomplished its original task. Now whether or not it has been successful or not in accounting for the spending of public schools, I cannot attest. But what I can tell you, is that valuable programs that are proven to improve academic performance (as well as create an enjoyable and talented learning environment) are being taken away to allow for a standard that is inapplicable to every student (seeing as each is different) to be met. I think it is time to cut the capitalistic *****, and take note that these are the people of the United States of America, not an entity that can be assigned a monetary value. This is more than just a cost product evaluation, but rather the public school system. Whats next, when more begin to fail, will the government see it as a waste of money and toss the system all together? It's this attitude that would provide for such a situation.
      • Liam76, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1"a standard that is inapplicable to every student (seeing as each is different)"

        No, every student should be encouraged to learn math and reading, and every students ability to do this can be measured.
    • slicerace, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I don't think you really understand NCLB if you're equating it with capitalism -- in fact, President Bush requested some $13 billion dollars for the program for FY2006. It doesn't sound very capitalistic or even business-like to keep putting money into a program that isn't working, so I don't think your argument that the program is an attempt to marginalize students at some dollar value is very strong.

      One thing to note is that a common critique of the program is that, in fact, it is funded too little -- teachers and school systems are supposed to implement certain provisions of the act, but aren't provided adequate funding to do so, which I think is really just shooting oneself in the foot.
      • 1ShotJake, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0I intended to respond to the initial comment above, because as I interpreted it, the program was being supported for its ability to maximize the effectiveness of the money used in the program itself, which is smart, but beside the point. I understand it would not be business like to continue to fund a program that does not provide results, my point being that that should not be the issue.
        Being underfunded is a major issue I recognize, and also feel that this is also a display of a lack of support for the intended result, maximizing the output for as little as possible. Simply cheap.

        If there is a problem, don't remove the bad results, fix the problem at its source.
    • izzybr, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6When you change one variable in an experiment, and things get worse, yes it IS a causal relationship. By the way, kudos on your xenophobia by suggesting that an influx of immigrants brought down the scores. And somehow I don't think the 'law of diminishing gains' applies here (although kudos again to show your intellectual prowess that you were able to at least stay awake in microeconomics) because we're still much further behind than the rest of the world.
    • Maarek, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3Kinda odd that when mbraynyard's ancestors, or my ancestors, or practically any American's ancestors immigrated the educational system kept on going. Perhaps we should commission a study to find out why Mexican immigrants are so much worse than Irish, Polish, German, British, French, Japanese, Korean, or any of the other kinds of immigrants that most American's are or are descended from.

      Nah, we can just use them as a scapegoat for our wrong policies and other problems while using them for cheap labor (just like every other major immigrant group).
      • Liam76, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1Mexican immigrants are "so much worse" only in the sense that they are taught that they don't have to learn the language to function in the US.
        • zihr, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I've met little old ladies my grandmother's age who still won't learn or won't admit they've learned any language other than Polish, so what evidence do you have that this is a trait unique to Mexican immigrants?
  • bonesaw, on 10/10/2007, -12/+4I'm so tired of liberal *****...I disagree with this program... I mentioned before that all political articles boil down to Fox news or bush bashing. I trade off watching Fox, MSNBC, and CNN. It's obvious that people who bash on Fox never watch fox and only watch Olbermann or something. Sometimes Fox is on, sometimes MSNBC is on in regards to fairness. CNN is usually always on. However, if you are only watching your political viewpoint news from one source, you're just as stupid as the people who you love to call stupid.
    • DooM, on 10/10/2007, -1/+8I watch Fox on a daily basis for as long as I can stand it - in my view, and yes I'm a liberal (NOT a Democrat) and I'm not afraid of that tag, you have to know what crap the 'enemy' is spewing. I watch Olbermann and even CNN when I can stand it, although, their product is just boring crap - at least Fox is chuckling funny. So, I'll agree with you that it's important to hear issues from all sides - but that doesn't make Fox a legitimate news source.
      • jbsnyder, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1There is NO such thing as an unbiased source of information. Yeah, most people just go to the outlets that agree with them most, but Fox, CNN & MSNBC do not a varied set of information sources make. Throw in some international sources like the BBC, CBC and even the ever so vilified Al Jazeera. Yeah, those are all biased and crappy in their own rights, but at least you get some more coverage of things that the major US news sources ignore.

        That said, NEWS SHOULDN'T HAVE TO BE ENTERTAINING. Yes, it has become that way, read Daniel Boorstin's "The Image" for how this all came about. News is supposed to be a service that keeps people informed, not pacified or confident of views one already has. The world is not black and white, but you already know that.

        Honestly, what we need more than anything else is for people to care about confirmation of the news that they are consuming. Make thinking cool again. It certainly isn't right now.
    • SealHammer, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2I can only watch Fox News for 12 seconds before one of the annoying bitches' yelling gets to me.
      "I HAVE TO YELL TO GET A POINT ACROSS BECAUSE I AM FOX NEWS AND OUR EARS ARE TOO FULL OF ***** TO HEAR ANYTHING."
    • miriclaire, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5Bonesaw--Do you think you are well-informed and have various sources and views because you watch all the American channels? You are living in a make-believe world. You should also watch Canadian, Britian, and other European and Middle Eastern news if you truly wish to come out of our bubble.
      • sensical, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2All television news is pap. It doesn't matter what country it comes out of.
    • Nickdotnet, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6"I'm tired of liberal *****"....."youre just as stupid as the people who you love to call stupid."

      A conservative using circular reasoning? No! Call Fox, quick!
    • izzybr, on 10/10/2007, -1/+0Your problem is that CNN, MSNBC, and Fox are all *****...Fox MUCH more so than the others. If you think you're getting all the News from these three channels you need to wake the ***** up
    • itomato, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2You're stuck in the rut of believing you need an influx of Televised news. Step back, and let your own senses regain control. Then step forward again, and see how much news you really need, and observe the differences in that, and the source of it.

      Give it a year.

      I recommend this to anyone who sees anyone as "Liberals" or "Conservatives", with any hint of disdain, dislike, or confusion.
  • idontlikeyou2, on 10/10/2007, -0/+15Every child left behind...
    • JPOOPOO, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1no child left behind means they all must be in the same place, so every child left behind accomplishes the goal with zero costs!
  • instruisto, on 10/10/2007, -1/+44I am a teacher in a gifted program and I hate NCLB. I hate the way I have to teach to satisfy the requirements of this idiotic program. I have 81 grade-level expectations that I have to hit. My entire work-year comes down to a three-hour exam. In order to cram in all the test-prep I have had to cut back on the creative projects that were once the mainstay of gifted education. I hope that NCLB will die off he way that other edufads have met their fates over the decades. Ron Paul would eliminate this bureaucratic nonsense along with the Department of Education. If Ron Paul seems different from the other candidates it might be his unique perspective in Washington called "common sense."
    • JSchroeder, on 10/10/2007, -0/+12I'm also a teacher, and I also hate NCLB. Identifying minimum requirements and mandating that 100% of students (yes, 100%) meet these requirements by the middle of the next decade funnels the teachers' efforts to the low end of the student population. Renegade teachers, who choose to "waste" resources on students who are there to learn by "leaving behind" those uninterested, are identified as "failing."
      As a side note, a policy started by our new principal last year confirmed (for me) the existence of another problem with NCLB. For the first time, students taking the test (10th graders in Wisconsin) had a major incentive. If they received "advanced" or "proficient" in any subject, they got to exempt from the final exam in that subject. Scores jumped dramatically across all subjects. In other words, a large percentage of students were not trying on the tests in previous years. How can we accurately judge schools based on these test data?
    • tokyoturnip, on 10/10/2007, -6/+2Is "Ron Paul" the new digg comment, replacing "Does it blend?"?
    • Cmonkey67, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1You pink-o-commie-libo-dem-fag-a-crat-nazi-arab-islmao-fascist! Everyone knows that if you don't want communism or fascism you have to conform, follow orders and don't question your leaders! God damn I hate all you "teachers" brain washing my children with "facts" and "creative learning" and "science". Everyone knows that if god wanted us to know something he would have told some guy 2000 years ago to write it in a book!
  • bonesaw, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3@iamnotbatman...not all democrats
  • emuexplosion, on 10/10/2007, -3/+7Did it really slow their progress?

    Or was it the parents that accept no responsibility for their children that actually slowed them?
    • izzybr, on 10/10/2007, -3/+1Oh...THAT'S an interesting point. All of the parents in America suddenly became worse once this law was passed. Your an goddamn genius...or should I say jeanyus
      • PopcornDave, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1And you're a god damned idiot it seems for your comment. Parental involvement and school go hand in hand. If the parents aren't worried about what and how their kids are doing in school, why the hell should the schools care either?

        Either way, you've got a generation of parents that are more interested in being their kid's friend first and parent second. They don't dare discipline their child because then they might not be friends. Sure way for kids to be completely ***** up and spoiled.
        • izzybr, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0Look moron, let's say we only test them from fourth grade on, that's nine years. You're saying that all of those kids are from one generation of parents who all of the sudden stopped caring about their kids education, and this all happened as soon as NCLB Act was passed. You're completely ignoring the fact that there are people across a wide range of ages that have kids in the same grade levels, on top of that YOU HAVE ABSOLUTELY no proof that parents have become suddenly disinterested in their children's education. You are the 'god damned idiot'
  • prh99, on 10/10/2007, -2/+10While I am not a fan of the "lets throw more money at it" type solutions, I think the "let cut their funding" approach is just as bad or even worse. A public school's students test poorly so they cut federal funding, and expect the school to improve with even less. I think the NCLB was just a ploy to get federal money to private schools in the form of vouchers.
    • DooM, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5For the life of me, I can't understand why education is not a priority in this country. I can't understand why there is a SINGLE public school that is a POS that couldn't teach a ShihTzu to roll over. Good education is good for rich people, it's good for poor people, it's good for conservatives and liberals and moderates, it's good for the COUNTRY for crying out loud...
      • PopcornDave, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3Take your thoughts a step further. Why did schools cut programs like auto shop and wood shop. Those were teaching kids skills that weren't perhaps college bound. They were at least getting an education so that they could work when they got out of high school.
    • slicerace, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4How exactly do you equate spending over $10 billion dollars a year on a federal program restricting public education institutions as "a ploy to get federal money to private schools in the form of vouchers"?

      The component of the act that allows students to choose a different school if their particular school fails to meet "adequate progress standards" applies to only choosing public schools, so I still don't understand your critique of the law. There are so many easy ways to find fault in NCLB, but providing vouchers isn't one of them.
  • slmndr, on 10/10/2007, -1/+24It is time to deep-six this moronic plan. It is also time to shake up/break up teachers unions. No more tenure based pay/incentives. Pay them a fair wage to begin with and move them to a performance based compensation structure. Part of the responsibility of being a teacher is figuring out how to connect with the students and identify how each student learns and what special needs exist (for remedial AND advanced). Parents need to be woken up too. Homework is intended to be done at home. The teachers don't follow kids home to monitor their work and answer questions, parents are supposed to do this. Shirking this duty only sends the message that homework isn't important.

    Personal example: My nephew lived with my wife and me for a couple of years. He brought home low marks on his progress report because he was lying about his homework load and didn't turn any of it in when he did do it. My wife started going to school every day visiting all of his teachers at the end of the day to collect homework assignments. We made ourselves available to make sure he sat down and did the work and to answer questions. By the end of the semester and all through the next semester his grades were A's and B's. Visits to the school and constant eyes on monitoring were no longer necessary. We didn't use threats or yelling or intimidation, we just set the expectation and proved that we were prepared to follow up. He has since gone to live with other relatives who take no responsibility to monitor him and he brought home 3 F's and the rest C's and D's list last semester.

    There are far too many parents who think their responsibility for a child's education ends at the bus stop.
    • wil2200, on 10/10/2007, -0/+14that is exactly the problem...cause I lived it...parents do not want to do a god damn thing and they are ready to jump on your throat when their kid don't pass. And whats worse is having a principal that sides with the parents. The principal told me ever since i started teaching, more students have been failing (none of these students had a teacher in over 2 months)..these were a bunch of high school students who can't even add or multiply, say the word fraction and its like you are killing them
      The principal indirectly told me that kids need to pass no matter what.
      They fired me when I didn't pass the lazy ass pricks that don't do anything. I wanted to make a difference, but now ***** it.
      • Cyberen, on 10/10/2007, -0/+12Sorry to hear that, pal. At least you didn't sacrifice your integrity to appease someone else. Good job.
      • tokyoturnip, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3I second that. Sorry to see you lost your job. I am not a big fan of the "I am going to sue mentality". But you are definately in the right, in my opinion.
    • tokyoturnip, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Ding Ding Ding I wish I could digg more than just once.
    • Dralha, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Lazy ass parents really are the #1 problem in America's educational system.
  • wil2200, on 10/10/2007, -4/+7i used to be a teacher and all i keep hearing is about this crap over and over again
    they fired me cause they said i was too smart just cause i failed the little bastards that didn't want to study
    • JohnFlux, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7Good grief. You were a teacher? You should ask some of your old pupils to help you with your English. These new whizz kids even know where the punctuation marks are!
  • NikoKun, on 10/10/2007, -4/+2could of told you this years ago when they started it...
  • appetite, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4Yea, but those are just facts, why should we trust them?
  • SealHammer, on 10/10/2007, -2/+14As a middle-school above average student in the US, I have to agree that No Child Left Behind has been choking the more creative minds in schools, sometimes literally, leading to a complete dissatisfaction with education. If you want other children to have a better chance at learning, put them in a different class. I have been forced into the same classrooms with retarded(very much so) kids who, while I am not against asking questions, ask so many questions and have so little grammatical skills that it sometimes takes five minutes to decipher, "HOW DO I SPELL DAT."

    Basically, NCLB is babying the children in schools, and not letting them learn for themselves, they're having crap that they've already learned FORCED DOWN THEIR THROATS so that George Bush can grin and say, "I did something people approved of :]"
    The reason drop-out rates are so high is because half of high school dropouts are kids who couldn't stand having to learn ***** that they learned when they were in elementary school.

    George Bush is an idiot, Dick Cheney is heartless, Fox News, Fight the Man, etc.
    • kittybit83, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3I'd dig you more than once if i could. Thank you.
    • JSchroeder, on 10/10/2007, -3/+2Kiss your mother with that mouth?
    • daedalus790, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4My mother is a middle school teacher and I totally agree with you... but 'literally' choking minds? lol.
    • Audobahn, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3You do realize Ted Kennedy was the one who sponsored the bill, right?

      Having said that, Bush should have vetoed it and told them to try again.

    • Veritate, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2"I have been forced into the same classrooms with retarded(very much so) kids"

      There is nothing in NCLB that creates this situation. This is mismanagement by the school.
  • harvinator24, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6The entire country's educational system needs an overhaul, just look new york state Regents tests. 92% of students failed the math "B" test three years ago. I took that test and it had nothing the state education representatives said was going to be on a test. I believe thats a sign of failure, and its not the teachers its the system.

    If we parents of students didn't have to pay an education tax but instead paid money to the public school of their choice students would be getting a much better education because the money flows to the better public school. So if your school can't get students you go out of business in a sense. This is the practice in Netherlands, i think, and it works great.
  • gamehunter101, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1this is so true
  • LoneRanger85, on 10/10/2007, -2/+9What do you expect? One of the authors was Ted Kennedy.
  • HencheMann, on 10/10/2007, -7/+3All you Sniveling Liberal Pricks and traitor Reaganite Republicans had better fall in line with the Neo Con Agenda. Wake up and smell the fresh scent of crisp, startched brown shirts strolling through your neighborhood! You see, if we can dumb the populace down to make them as ignorant and pliable as possible. (...and I think it's working!) A dicatorship runs much better that way!
    • JohnFlux, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Sorry for the ignorance (I'm not American), but why are people blaming the liberals in particular for this? Most people on digg are liberals and are (and were) against this plan.
    • hillsonn, on 10/10/2007, -2/+0your sarcasm smells like cynicism but sounds more like a premature jump off, at least us brown backs smell like the fresh clippings from your lawn and not the stains left on your ago after masturbating it on the Internet for everyone on these boards to see.
  • NnyCW, on 10/10/2007, -1/+0The system rewarded teaching to test, rather than teaching for the acquirement and retainment of knowledge to enrich ones own life. People expected this to do good things?
  • andenbre, on 10/10/2007, -7/+0My kids schools are constantly complaining about the "unreasonable" standards that must be met to keep federal funding. While ever since no child left behind has been implemented I am seeing more effective teaching practices all around and attention being paid to kids that need it instead of those children being passed through without learning. Teachers seem to actually care if a student is having a problem now. Every time I see a newsletter from the school saying my child is not getting their fair amount of education due to the fact that they have to make sure children that aren't as bright can pass minimum tests, I chuckle. I think its about time these schools are held responsible for the education of their students. Maybe its time to run school year round if there isn't enough time. Though they haven't had a problem with fed funding yet
    • FunkyPits, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2More effective how? I have a friend who moved to California to teach she says that basically they are putting the kids through 3 hours of math, and 3 hours of reading... and nothing else. No history, no science, no electives to speak of. All this to meet federal funding "for the children". Your children will not have an easier life for this, although I can tell you since they do complain about the "unreasonable standards" they are going to be smarter than you.
      • Nickdotnet, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1It's cuz math and reading are the most important. You need to be able to read your rights as you're thrown in jail for fighting the patriot act, and you need to be able to do math so you can count the years you'll be in jail waiting for your trial. It's simple really.
        • FunkyPits, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Remember shiny side out on the tinfoil captian hat sir!
    • joe573, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3So you mean to tell me that the teachers at your kid's school didn't give a damn if they passed or not until No child left behind was implemented? I would have pulled them out of that school then. Most teachers genuinely care about the kids they teach.....they surely aren't in it for the money. No federally mandated program can make you care about something.
  • Prefection, on 10/10/2007, -4/+3No Child Left Behind is the equivalent of shooting a lame horse... in it's three good legs.
  • kittybit83, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2i am so glad i finished school before this was enacted. i was one of the best in my classes, and i shudder to think how that would have changed if this were in place. now i'm scared for my children, because my daughter is going to kindergarten this year, and if she has the ability, i want her to be the best in her class and advance with no limits, but by no means should she be punished for it, and forced to wait for the slower students. and where i live..... they'll be pretty slow..... lol
  • IsmailOo, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0heh, was to be expected.. I'm currently still in High school.. so I too have to go through with it.. its pretty lame, I have all honors classes and I still learn nothing in school... I kinda just want to be home schooled and get the ***** done faster so I can go to ***** college already and learn something...
  • WoollyMittens, on 10/10/2007, -1/+3After having a "grade A" student brag to me that they were in the "no child left behind" program for about a dozen "emo" related disorders, I kinda lost faith in that idea. That coupled with the fact that the student in question couldn't read analog clocks or roman numerals.
  • tjdoom, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2What bugged me about it was that in California, Biology is a required freshman class. During sophomore year is when the NCLB Biology test is taken, when no one remembers anything about the subject.
  • nomadxx7, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Oh noes.... Bush and his cornerstone piece of legislation are dumbing down America? You think he's trying to get more stupid people so that his ratings may increase due to the fact that an illiterate person may actually believe the ***** that his Administration spews? Wow, when No Child Was Left Behind I knew it was going to be a failure. They could have had me do a report to show that whatever Bush touches he breaks. Oh and for the record Michael Moore was right in Fahrenheit 9/11 (or at least I think that was the movie) where he said that every company that Bush ran he ran into the ground. Now he has the US of A and he is not doing any better.

    Impeach that bastard already!
  • nfltetas, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1You folks who talk about NCLB working, and programs that shuffle funding away from public schools - are you serious?! Where are you from and where did you go to school (if you did)? The main problem in the quality & credibility gap between schools (regardless of public or private) is the funding. As others have said, 'Doh!' We have an apartheid system of schooling in this country - don't kid yourselves - and those w/the most support it the most staunchly. 'Fund our own schools' - nice, if you happen to be above the poverty line. Far above. Equalize the funding among ALL schools and THEN watch what happens in performance - keeping up with the Joneses gets a lot easier when you have the capital to do so. Did your school (or your child's) have a playground or open space where kids could go out at recess? Did it have a roof that didn't leak, plumbing that worked, windows that weren't falling out? Think this is extreme? Go pay a visit IN PERSON to inner city schools in major urban areas and then talk to me about 'accountability'. Quality education is supposed to be a right, not a privilege, in this grand country of ours. Bastardized again by public policies of morons whose platinum educations apparently didn't 'learn them' a damn thing. Pathetic and shameful.
    • maz2331, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Uh, here in Pittsburgh, our inner city schools spend way more per pupil than those in the more rural counties nearby. Guess what? The inner-city schools still lag in performance big time. It's not the money, it's the students involved in gangs and drugs who screw it up for the ones who want to learn.
      • RationalXubrnce, on 10/10/2007, -4/+0 Africans are not as smart as Europeans, it's time we looked at the hard truth of that fact.
        • LadyKofNYC, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1And apparently, you're the dumbest of all.
  • allcdnboy, on 10/10/2007, -4/+2no child left behind is garbage. my g/f is a teacher and she isn't even allowed to fail any of her students. what happened to good old "nature selection"
    • RationalXubrnce, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1 Communists don't believe in natural laws, they are evil and should be suppressed in favor of unprovable fairy tale versions of how the world should work. And when those methods fail, they don't believe they were ever wrong.
  • artvandal, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I went to a private school for 5 years before entering a public school in 8th grade. Pretty much all of the curriculum we were taught, I remember especially math, I had already been taught so I went a good two years relearning the same material I already knew. It was especially sad that some of the kids in my class when I reached high school didn't even know how to read. Many just dropped out, which was pretty common.
  • DeFex, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2more stupid people = more republicans. its simple really.
    • RationalXubrnce, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1 Not really, look at all of the leftist dummies steering this country down the hole. Harvard Yale and MIT are full of them and for all of their "smarts" nothing they enact makes America stronger, only weaker.
      • Touchet, on 01/14/2008, -0/+0Wow, listen to what you just said. The first comment doesn't count it is an lllogical fallacy. Attacking someone with insults doesn't prove anything. Second you said that harvard and yale and MIT are full of them (idots) and for all their "smarts" (meaning they have them). makes america weaker, not stronger. Thats a contradiction, they can't be smart and idiots at the same time. In any case, every one of your comments was an illogical fallacy. How do they make america weaker? Just saying they are idiots doesn't count, you have to list specific examples that prove that they aren't smarter than you and/or they make decisions that make America weaker. By leftist i assume you mean someone who has a liberal education. That is the whole purpose of college. In your above arguement you say they have smarts and you imply that you are not one of them. Does this mean you are not smart? You said it, not me. Maybe you might do well to join a college and take Logic 101, it will help you improve your arguementative skills greatly.
  • Fetching more discussions...
    Show 51 - 100 of 124 discussions
  •  

    Login or register to add a comment

    Create a new account or login to join in the conversation on Digg. You'll also be able to Digg stories to help promote things you like.


© Digg Inc. 2008 — Content posted by Digg users is dedicated to the public domain.
DIGG, DIGG IT, DUGG, DIGG THIS, Digg graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, scripts, and other service names are the trademarks of Digg Inc.