Every Teacher Left Behind

[Ralph]

Education law leaves children behind
'The day of reckoning is here, and it's not going to pass'

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Not a single state will have a highly qualified teacher in every core class this school year as promised by President Bush's education law. Nine states along with the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico face penalties.

The Department of Education on Friday ordered every state to explain how it will have 100 percent of its core teachers qualified -- belatedly -- in the 2006-07 school year.

In the meantime, some states face the loss of federal aid because they didn't make enough effort to comply on time, officials said.

They are Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina and Washington, plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

"At some point there was, I suspect, a little bit of notion that 'This too shall pass,' " said Henry Johnson, the assistant secretary over elementary and secondary education. "Well, the day of reckoning is here, and it's not going to pass."

Department officials would not say how much aid could be withheld from states to force compliance. But Johnson said, "In some cases, we're talking about large amounts of money."

States often fell short because they did not report accurate or complete data about the quality of the teacher corps, said Rene Islas, who oversees the department's review.

The 4-year-old No Child Left Behind law says teachers must have a bachelor's degree, a state license and proven competency in every subject they teach by this year. The first federal order of its kind, it applies to teachers of math, history and any other core class.

In grading the states, the department found that 29 have made substantial progress. They must improve, but they do not face looming sanctions.

Twelve other states are still under review and haven't been rated: Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

No matter which category they are in, all the states must submit a new plan of action.

Most states give themselves good grades on teacher quality; 33 states say 90 percent to 99 percent of their classes are taught by highly qualified teachers. Most of the rest put their numbers a tier below, in a range of 70 percent to 89 percent.

"I know the states have made great efforts in trying to meet all the prongs of the highly qualified teacher requirement," said Scott Palmer, a consultant for the Council of Chief State School Officers. "I've got to believe there are some that are very close."

As for the ones that aren't, Palmer said he hopes the department will recognize the ways states are trying to improve teacher effectiveness, even beyond the basics the law requires.

States were notified Friday. The department plans to follow up in coming days.

What the agency wants to see most, Johnson said, is what states are doing to get experienced teachers into classrooms with large numbers of poor and minority children.

That no state complied with the law on time -- four years after Bush signed it with great fanfare -- is due in part to the enormity of the challenge.

Some teachers, particularly in small or rural areas, handle many subjects and have not met the law's details in each one. Many schools struggle just to find teachers in math, science or special education. And turnover is common, often blamed on salary and stress.

Although the federal term is "highly qualified," the definition is widely regarded as more of a minimum qualification, because it requires teachers to know what they teach.

Phyllis McClure, who supports the law and tracks it for the Citizens' Commission on Civil Rights, said the department is right to demand accurate data and results from the states.

"They don't like having to do all this," said McClure, a supporter of the law. "I must say that they have become used to getting their way with the federal government."

[Corlyss_D]

Utah opted out of NCLB even though it meant the loss of something like $75 mil to the state. The DoE buckled and decided to allow Utah to use its own standards.

Utah Schools Get Nod from Feds

May 11, 2006 by Julie Rose
New Flexibility in Federal NCLB Mandates
(KCPW News) A year and a half after state lawmakers raised hackles in Washington by publicly rejecting No Child Left Behind, Utah has received an important concession from the U.S. Department of Education. State Superintendent Patti Harrington says the Utah's procedure for assessing students has been approved by federal officials.

"The department has virtually validated both the content and process by which we're assessing our children, which is the heart and soul of No Child Left Behind," says Harrington. "It's a strong signal they like the rigor and methods by which we assess our children."

The latest nod of approval comes after a year of occasionally rancorous dealings between state and federal education officials. Harrington says Utah still has not been given approval to ignore No Child Left Behind in favor of the state's own system. Utah is one of only four states to receive approval for its testing procedures from the U.S. Office of Education.

Of course, the DC public schools are a joke, with the highest per capita cost and the lowest graduation rate, so it's no surprise that they can't meet the standards. They can't meet any standards.

[Ralph]

Utah opted out of NCLB even though it meant the loss of something like $75 mil to the state. The DoE buckled and decided to allow Utah to use its own standards.

Utah Schools Get Nod from Feds

May 11, 2006 by Julie Rose
New Flexibility in Federal NCLB Mandates
(KCPW News) A year and a half after state lawmakers raised hackles in Washington by publicly rejecting No Child Left Behind, Utah has received an important concession from the U.S. Department of Education. State Superintendent Patti Harrington says the Utah's procedure for assessing students has been approved by federal officials.

"The department has virtually validated both the content and process by which we're assessing our children, which is the heart and soul of No Child Left Behind," says Harrington. "It's a strong signal they like the rigor and methods by which we assess our children."

The latest nod of approval comes after a year of occasionally rancorous dealings between state and federal education officials. Harrington says Utah still has not been given approval to ignore No Child Left Behind in favor of the state's own system. Utah is one of only four states to receive approval for its testing procedures from the U.S. Office of Education.

Of course, the DC public schools are a joke, with the highest per capita cost and the lowest graduation rate, so it's no surprise that they can't meet the standards. They can't meet any standards.

*****

Utah schools? Is that an oxymoron?

[Corlyss_D]

Utah schools? Is that an oxymoron?

[jbuck919]

They are Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina and Washington, plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

Ironically, this list excludes the entire southeast except for North Carolina, where per pupil spending is ridiculously low but on-paper certification requirements are artificially high (it being easier to restrict entry into the profession than to put your money where your mouth is). So Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, and Washington don't qualify as having met standards when Mississippi and Louisiana do?

I have my own set of problems, but thank God DoDDS is not subject to NCLB.

[Dies Irae]

Education law leaves children behind
'The day of reckoning is here, and it's not going to pass'



The 4-year-old No Child Left Behind law says teachers must have a bachelor's degree, a state license and proven competency in every subject they teach by this year. The first federal order of its kind, it applies to teachers of math, history and any other core class.

Again, we have a situation where the federal government wants teachers to be in possession of a piece of paper showing their worth. They don't give a damn that such a piece of paper may be totally or at least, almost, worthless. EXPERIENCE makes the best teachers, NOT possession of a license, a bachelors degree, a masters degree or a certificate. The fact that such a piece of paper may have been earned from a relatively worthless college or university, never enters the minds of the legislators. Does a teaching certificate and a masters degree from the "Frank Putz" University have the same cache as one earned from Harvard University or the University of California?

Music is not part of the core curriculum. But would you rather have Leonard Bernstein or some properly credentialed run of the mill high school teacher provide instruction in conducting or music appreciation?

The ONLY things teachers should possess before they enter the classroom, is an interest and basic knowledge of the subject they are about to tackle and extensive experience in communicating with students. Every budding teacher (in any subject) regardless of their possession or non-possession of the proper documents, should practice teach (whom they would practice teach IS a problem) WITH FULL PAY for at least 5 years before being allowed to actually be responsible for a class. Screw the certification and licensing requirements. Experience is what counts.

[Corlyss_D]

Again, we have a situation where the federal government wants teachers to be in possession of a piece of paper showing their worth.

You can thank the NEA for that little requirement.

The ONLY things teachers should possess before they enter the classroom, is an interest and basic knowledge of the subject they are about to tackle and extensive experience in communicating with students.

Silly you! How could the NEA restrict the supply of teachers so they could drive up teachers' pay if just any ol' body could be a good teacher? Don't you know that the sole purpose of the NCLB was to buy off the NEA? It didn't work - they still hate Republicans and Bush in particular.