I read this quote from a teacher printed in Time magazine: "No Child Left Behind never changed how I taught. I know what my kids need." It made me think that it would be a great to collect from as many teachers' as possible opinions and wisdom and store it all in one place (like a gigantic graffiti wall!) in order to inform public opinion and change public policy if it needs to be changed. The quote is from Bridget Cole, a fourth grade teacher from Colorado. She said it in response to the Obama Administration freeing 10 states from some of the landmark education law's toughest requirements.
A few years ago I was motivated to write a letter to the Secretary of Education and to California's State Superintendent suggesting we only give our students the statewide tests mandated by "No Child Left Behind" every other year or every third year.
Here is part of the letter: The yearly "No Child Left Behind" testing has had more negative than positive effects. As a parent, I see that the focus has made learning workbook centered, repetitive, superficial, disconnected, disengaging and dull. Teaching and learning should be engaging, theme based and designed to encourage deeper thinking and lifelong learning. Keep the curiosity alive! (That exclamation I didn't have in the original letter. I was making a reference to a great speech by Jessie Jackson, that I have on audio tape, "Keep Hope Alive."
As a teacher, I remember what teaching was like before "No Child Left Behind" testing. The focus on testing has taken a lot of creativity and enjoyment out of the work day. Let's give these tests every other year or every third year!
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