No Child Left Behind Assessment Essay - 1289 Words

If a standardized test was a contestant on Dancing With the Stars or American Idol, would it be voted off? Depends on whether the judges were politicians, professors, psychologists or parents. The stakes are high; ideology and money are at stake, and accountability is on the line. Using standardized tests as quantitative measurement tools have important implications for American education, â€Å"quality of assessment is one of the key features of good teaching and setting appropriate assessment tasks should question students in a way that demands evidence of understanding† (Jimaa, 20011, p. 217). The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) education reform program is a good example of this concept. The ambitious federal education bill that President†¦show more content†¦After a century and a half of universal public education, and despite the highest per-pupil expenditure on public elementary and secondary education in the world, forty percent of United States fourth graders read below the minimally acceptable level, according to National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). And for minority students in inner-city schools, that rate is 65 percent. It is an accepted fact that children who do not read by fourth grade almost always fall behind in all other subjects. (It is even more moving to realize that children learned to read well in one-room schoolhouses before all of the debate about â€Å"best practices,† pedagogy, etc.) The NCLB act required mandatory annual testing in basic reading and math skills for all children in grades three through eight. The results required scores to be broken down by race, sex, English-language proficiency, and socioeconomic status, and made public. (States were permitted to develop their own tests subject to federal oversight.) The mandatory testing requirement served to hold schools accountable. â€Å"However, for the most part states did not examine the effects of testing on educational practice. That was an important omission because one of the central assumptions of NCLB was the provision of high-quality information that would promote improved educationalShow MoreRelated The No Child Left Behind Act: Impact on the Assessment of Special Education Students3353 Words   |  14 PagesThe No Child Left Behind Act: Impact on the Assessment of Special Education Students Three years after the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) moved into our schools there is a great deal of controversy that questions whether the act implemented by President George W. Bush is helping or hurting an already suffering school system. There are many dimensions of the NCLB act that have been questioned over the past three years; the fair assessment of students with disabilities is one of them. As the NationalRead MoreShould Children Have A Special Need?1676 Words   |  7 Pagesor unable to reach grade level standards? The No Child Left Behind Act gives all children a fair, equal chance to reach the minimum proficiency on standard academic assessments that they are expected to take whether they have a disability or not. The current talk among professionals is that they believe that these assessments deal with the amount of student’s graduating high school and the choice of public schools. Not only are these assessments being given to students to test their knowledge,Read MoreThe Debate Over the No Child Left Behind Act Essay1014 Words   |  5 Pagessurrounding the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 are both positive and negative. Many politicians and people that previously supported the Act are now standing against it. In the beginning many supported the new Act because everyone was aware that a change needed to happen in the education system and the proposal of No Child Left Behind seemed like the answer we were looking for. As the No Child Left Behind requirements began to be felt in the school systems across America and the assessments results startedRead MoreNo Child Left Behind Act Essay1646 Words   |  7 Pages The No Child Left Behind Act was based on the Elementary Sec ondary Education Act of 1965. The act was established based on the promise of Thomas Jefferson to create a free public education system in Virginia (Hammond, Kohn, Meier, Sizer Wood, 2004). The act is now reauthorized as the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. The purpose of the No Child Left Behind Act was to make sure that children were given a fair, quality education. 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Under the No Child Left Behind Act, states would have to administer tests yearly in reading, math, and science. No Child Left Behind holds school districts accountable for student achievement or lack of achievement. No Child Left Behind legislation is basedRead MoreThe Ramifications of Government Reform on Education Essay1354 Words   |  6 Pageseducation in America. However, government acts like No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and Common Core curriculums have been put into effect in order to reverse America’s position. They are best understood as tools to bridge the achievement gap re gardless of what a child may look like, sound like, or what part of the nation they come from. These programs are designed to help all children excel in school no matter what. Even though the No Child Left Behind Act significantly increased the average performanceRead MoreImportance of Educational Assessment Tools Essay567 Words   |  3 Pagesinconsistencies with the testing data. As educators, we have persistent questions as why we do what we do. From classroom instructional strategies and assessments to positive behavior and classroom management; the more we reflect and question instructional decisions that are taking place within our classroom, school, and county. The No Child Left Behind Act is a legislation that is a reality all over the nation. According to Spellings (2007), the NCLB Act recognizes what truly make a difference inRead MoreThe No Child Left Behind Act Essay1731 Words   |  7 Pageshas instilled in our youths. At the turn of the century, there seemed to be a shift. And that shift is due, in part, to the introduction of the No Child Left Behind Act, a federal public education act that forces schools to follow certain policies and meets standards in order to receive federal funding. It is believed by many that No Child Left Behind has assisted in the marginalization of arts education in public schools by way of prioritizing core subjects. This thinking, and by conjecture thisRead MoreEducation Is An Important Part Of Society1690 Words   |  7 Pageswould receive a good education. However, not every child was receiving the same education opportunities based on money issues surrounding them and the minority they were classifi ed as, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 was to ensure that these issues would be dissolve. On January 8th of 2002, six months and one war later after George W. Bush first proposed the No Child Left Behind bill, it was finally passed. Under the No Child Left Behind, every state was required to develop and implement strict