| | | | The peril of “No Child Left Behind” |
By D. Lynn Byrne, Ph.D. 
Sometime in the next 100 days, the U.S. Congress will move to renew the “No Child Left Behind” (NCLB) legislation introduced by President George W. Bush five years ago. Though our elected representatives are considering some changes to the legislation, the focus of NCLB is still on standards and accountability. This is inherently problematic as legislators are overly focused on defining a standard, one-size fits all curriculum and on measuring student and school success through standardized testing.
What’s wrong with standards? Nothing really, if by “standards” you mean a basic/core set of skills upon which additional, valuable skills will be added. But in the case of NCLB, setting “standards” means maintaining a relatively inflexible, one-size fits all, locked-step curriculum that is neither student-centered nor geared towards developing creative/critical thinkers.
How did we come to this point? In the 19th century—the industrial era--Americans were concerned with producing a standardized product (a high school graduate that could read, write and do basic math); and education experts created a factory (an educational system) that was structured to manufacture this product in stages (in grades, by age). Products that successfully passed each stage of the manufacturing process received a rubber stamp of approval (promotion to the next grade). Those that did not pass were removed from the main manufacturing line (passed into remedial, special or alternative education) or discarded (they dropped out). Using the factory method, educators were able to move vast numbers of students through the system, and turn out a fairly solid product.
If the system worked, why not keep it? Ah, but that’s the point. The factory system of education supported by the requirements of NCLB doesn’t really work. Students aren’t widgets. They are thinking, feeling entities with diverse sets of talents and interests. The one-size fits all approach cannot possibly create an environment that fosters achievement at the individual level. Those students who are either uninterested in the standard curriculum or who have not developed the skills and talents necessary to score well on the standardized exams used to measure success are either left behind or discarded. And the quality of the students that do pass through the system is questionable as “standards” must be redefined (meaning, standards are typically lowered) so that the majority of students in the system earn a rubber stamp of approval. This educational paradigm has no place in the information age.
Are there viable alternatives to the factory model? Absolutely! Maria Montessori’s child-centered approach; Rudolf Steiner’s dynamic, individualized knowledge development scheme; and John Dewey’s informal approach to Democratic education are but a few of the well-known, well-researched, workable alternatives to the factory method in place in most schools/districts today. Across the country, public charter schools, public alternative schools and some private schools have worked diligently and effectively to embrace these and other methods of providing high-quality educational opportunities for students that lead not to a manufactured “product” but to the development of creative/critical thinkers suited for work and participation in an information based society.
What can parents do to help refocus educational goals so that the needs of our student are adequately met? Participation is the key to change. Active parental participation in each and every educational forum possible (reading/sending notes to the school, making phone calls, teacher/counselor meetings, PTA/PTO participation, school/district committee work, volunteering on campus/in the district, attendance at local/district/state hearings, etc.). Do what you can, when you can to both participate in your child’s educational activities and have an active voice in your child’s educational process. The desires and needs of the public drive the educational process for our students; and your voice/actions count!
What happens if we do nothing? I’d like to think that the U.S. is a forward-thinking nation, that we’re concerned with making adequate plans and preparations for a sustainable future. But, as William Spay , author of Beyond Counterfeit Reform, so eloquently puts it, if we continue to deny the needs of our students and focus only on producing Widgits, we’re looking at regression and not progress.
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