Dozens in GOP Turn Against Bush's Prized 'No Child' Act

[babylonsister]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/14/AR2007031402741.html?nav=hcmodule

Dozens in GOP Turn Against Bush's Prized 'No Child' Act

By Jonathan Weisman and Amit R. Paley
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, March 15, 2007; Page A01

More than 50 GOP members of the House and Senate -- including the House's second-ranking Republican -- will introduce legislation today that could severely undercut President Bush's signature domestic achievement, the No Child Left Behind Act, by allowing states to opt out of its testing mandates.

For a White House fighting off attacks on its war policy and dealing with a burgeoning scandal at the Justice Department, the GOP dissidents' move is a fresh blow on a new front. Among the co-sponsors of the legislation are House Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), a key supporter of the measure in 2001, and John Cornyn (R-Tex.), Bush's most reliable defender in the Senate. Rep. Eric Cantor (Va.), the House GOP's chief deputy whip and a supporter in 2001, has also signed on.

Burson Snyder, a spokesman for Blunt, said that after several meetings with school administrators and teachers in southwest Missouri, the House Republican leader turned against the measure he helped pass. Blunt was convinced that the burdens and red tape of the No Child Left Behind Act are unacceptably onerous, Snyder said.

Some Republicans said yesterday that a backlash against the law was inevitable. Many voters in affluent suburban and exurban districts -- GOP strongholds -- think their schools have been adversely affected by the law. Once-innovative public schools have increasingly become captive to federal testing mandates, jettisoning education programs not covered by those tests, siphoning funds from programs for the talented and gifted, and discouraging creativity, critics say.

To be sure, key lawmakers would like to reauthorize the law this year. Ranking Republicans on the House and Senate education committees are pushing for a renewal. And key Democrats, including Rep. George Miller (Calif.) and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (Mass.), the chairmen of the House and Senate committees responsible for drafting an updated No Child Left Behind Act, are strong supporters, although they want large increases in funding and more emphasis on teacher training and development.

Still, Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.), author of the new House bill, said the number of Republicans already backing the new measure exceeds the 41 House Republicans and Democrats who voted against the original legislation in 2001. Of the House bill's co-sponsors, at least eight voted for the president's plan six years ago.

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[Virginia Dare]

1. My freeper relative argued with me for about a half an hour one day..

about how "Clinton's" No Child Left Behind law really screwed up the schools. I couldn't convince him it was the chimp's bright idea. There is no reasoning with them.

[Supersedeas]

6. reason is the ugly sister to Freeper's incestuous love of HATE

[blondie58]

2. my daughters school is really upset

as my daughter is home sick- and missing her third day- of Csap tests. What can you do though, when you have the flu?

[pnwmom]

3. It's always been such a farce

that every child, in every subcategory -- including recent immigrants without English, dyslexic students, mentally retarded students, etc. -- should be able to attain the same high standards in reading, math, and writing.

And the poor teachers who have had to go along with this game of let's pretend . . . .

[babylonsister]

4. I even question the 'high standards'. I think the one who memorizes

the best gets the best grades. That has nothing to do with actually learning something.

[pnwmom]

8. In my state it's not that kind of test.

But it has its own set of problems. For example, the math test consists mostly of word problems requiring written out responses -- explaining your thinking process -- in English. At an open meeting, I asked if they were going to provide translators for the third of our kids who are ESL students and the answer was no, they need to be able to answer in English. I pointed out that this was a MATH test, not a reading test, and it shouldn't depend on their English skills. They didn't have an answer for me.

The math test also is a poor vehicle for dyslexic students, many of whom may actually be strong in math, but are not strong in reading and writing. And, ironically, it's also a poor test for students actually gifted in math. I did some of the sample 7th grade problems, and did quite well. On the other hand, my PHD scientist husband had trouble with them. He insisted not enough information was provided -- because he knew too much. I knew little, so I wasn't held back as he was. But any student truly gifted in math would have had the same kind of problem my husband had.

On edit:

Another problem is that, you're right, since each state can set up its own standards, they're certainly not all high standards -- some states got with the program simply by designing easy tests. In Washington, on the other hand, we had already developed our own test, one that only about a third of the students was initially passing -- even though our state scores better than average on nationwide tests.

[undergroundpanther]

5. creative kids ask too many questions

I got sent to the principal for my report in middle school on the origins of the public school system. Why? Because it was subversive it was challenging to the school"authority" system and it made school look like a big social engineering/manipulation camp.

Because when gifted students go there at least it was that way for me, I was tormented as teachers looked the other way.I was creative they loved my artwork and I was given plenty of projects,some I am told still remain in the school after over 15 years (cafeteria wall tile art picture I did of a big purple lion in a sorta Mesopotamian style).
But they did not protect me. I made the report because I wondered what could motivate these teachers to not see any reason to get off their asses and help protect me from the abuse dished out to me everyday?

Why ? Oh sure my mom would go to parent -teacher stuff and hear the teacher sob about what happened to me, but they never stood up, Why? I wanted to know why..Because in the 70's schools were not about learning really but about creating obedient worker bees for the state and corporation. That was the unspoken message creative smart people are not wanted if they question powers that be, and their entitlement attitudes twords power. I know fundie freaks home school but I am not 100% against it because if a gifted kid not in an abusive home is home schooled by a caring adult that encourages them without pressure the kid will grow to be happy with learning.And take pride in his intelligence instead of dumbing himself down to avoid the humiliation and scorn from teachers and bullies alike.Because school is about breaking a kid's spirit so they obey authority and can sit for long hours and do boring repetitive tasks..First.

Teacher's neglect of my mental health proved a big point in my report about how grade systems and the school milieu itself are designed to encourage submission to authority figures ,reinforce social rank games,and set the student up to give unearned respect authorities as in when the teachers were not caring still obey. When the teachers were not there, class was not in session as in hallways playgrounds bus lot,'authoritarian' was the school bullies job and he was the fists of the state while the teacher was the good cop.. Bringing that ugly little social dynamic up in a clearly articulated way in class is what got me shit-canned. Can't let the truth out can we even if it was the assignment(write something you know about public school)
The only thing outstandingly cool about my middle school was the mascot, a purple lion.

[calimary]

7. A TEXAS republi-CON signs onto this? My, my, my. Wasn't Texas

once the the cradle of this "grand experiment"? Didn't some idiot governor from Texas once boast about how marvelous his state's schools were doing because of this "grand experiment" of his and how the Texas "miracle" should be applied nationwide? :eyes:

Man, the wheels really ARE coming off the cart.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

9. Even the Lt. Governor in Texas is now for changing NCLB as it currently stands

Let's face it, Texas was the "test" model and the children of the state have been the victims of this asinine policy. The result has been Texas students earning a rating of 49th on the verbal portion of the SAT on a national scale and 36th in HS graduation rates. That should have been all the proof they needed that NCLB doesn't work.

The proposed new approach is to change the TAKS to end-of-course exams that mirror what the teachers are actually teaching in the classes. What they end up deciding on is anyones guess.