One more reason No Child Left Behind needs to be abolished!!

[proud2BlibKansan]

Raytown Parents Outraged Over School Letter

Eric L. Wesson

Several parents voiced their outrage after a letter from the Spring Valley Elementary school was sent home to inform parents that they could transfer their children out of the school because the test scores of black children in the school did not reach the Adequate Yearly Progress goal.

Ms. Barbara Condra, deputy superintendent for the Spring Valley School District, issued a letter which stated: “This memo is included with your district letter to inform you that Spring Valley Elementary school did not meet the No Child Let Behind, AYP goals and is designated as being ‘In School Improvement Level 1’. Your school received this designation because one of the schools four subgroups did not meet the required standard in both Math and Communications Arts. The school total population scores fell short of the required 42.9 percent and the black students did not reach the AYP goal in math.”

Parents who asked not to be identified said that they were in shock when they received the letter.

“I sat down and read it twice then went back and read the first paragraph again. I could not believe what I was reading. I got so mad I started shaking,” said one parent.

“I am still wondering what the phrase ‘subgroup’ means,” the parent said.

Some parents have removed their child or children from the school.

more . . . http://www.kccall.com/article.cfm?articleID=1566#comments

FYI, this school didn't do anything wrong. They are following their legal requirements under NCLB to inform parents when they don't make AYP and to identify which subgroup didn't meet the criteria. Subgroups are: minorities, free lunch kids, special ed kids and ESL kids. (Yes, the law doesn't look at the progress of white, non-poor, non-disabled English speaking kids!!)

[Forkboy]

1. It's been a disaster.

The sooner it's trashed the better.

This story here is just sad on a lot of levels.

[proud2BlibKansan]

9. It really is sad

This is an inner core suburban area with a great school district where a lot of African American families have moved. This letter had to be a slap in the face to these families.

[NMMNG]

2. What a crock

NCLB is a complete disaster on so many levels, this being only one of them.

[MissB]

3. Our school doesn't publish subgroups.

They purposely remove that identifying information.

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. Maybe it is a state reg here?

But we have to identify the subgroups.

[MissB]

11. Maybe.

In our school district's case, the district has very few minorities. So they're sensitive to the idea that they might somehow identify kids that perform poorly. Sort of the opposite of the school from the OP.

[proud2BlibKansan]

14. I could have sworn that is in NCLB

But if you guys don't do it that way, then it must be a state reg. This school was just following the law, they didn't do anything wrong.

[MissB]

17. I don't know the law very well.

I've just read their reports every year and noted that they purposely don't identify how the subgroups do and that their reason is that it is to protect the identity of the people in the subgroup.

I think the law is horrible on many fronts, regardless of whether that school is following it to the letter or not. :(

[proud2BlibKansan]

23. I have read it and it is a very confusing document

My district identifies the schools and the subgroups. And so does the suburban district in the OP.

[madrchsod]

4. some districts transfer all "bad" students

to a single school,that way the rest of the district is at or above the norm...

[proud2BlibKansan]

10. We have charter schools here

and they kick out all the kids they don't want and we get to enroll them in our traditional public schools.

[ulysses]

29. that's not uncommon.

My school the last three years was that middle school for that district.

[leftchick]

5. what a fucking horror!

:grr:

[proud2BlibKansan]

8. And it is all perfectly legal

[stop the bleeding]

6. I am fucking pissed

We need to leave this administration behind. :mad:

[proud patriot]

12. as an Educator I must K and R this thread

[proud2BlibKansan]

15. Thank you

I am at the end of my career in education and I am COMMITTED to getting rid of this damn law.

[LWolf]

13. FYI:

The proposed draft to reauthorize is available now. I haven't posted anything, because I'm trying to slog through it. It's 400+ pages of political language. Anyway, as soon as Congress reconvenes, it will be up for discussion. More to follow once I've tried to digest it.

Note: it is still fervent about the constant testing/ranking. It's "tweaking," but not changing the faulty underlying premise. That part I've got figured out. :grr:

[proud2BlibKansan]

16. My congressman has a bill that eliminates the requirements of NCLB

if the feds don't fully fund it. But I don't know if it is out of committee yet.

[LWolf]

24. That's better than nothing.

Personally, I would like to see the corrupt foundation of high-stakes testing, and top-down control of curriculum and instruction, be striken from the bill. I don't want to fund bad policy.

[roody]

36. Today a teachers' union employee spoke

at the Democratic Labor Day Picnic. He said both Reid and Pelosi have signed on to a revision that strips teachers of collective bargaining rights and will evaluate the teachers only on test scores. Contact you congressional "representatives."

[proud2BlibKansan]

40. WTF??

Those bastards.

Retirement here I come.

[roody]

42. That's what I say!

[Richard Steele]

18. NCLB seems DESIGNED to destroy the public education system.

I honestly believe that is its true intent.

[proud2BlibKansan]

26. And you would be correct

[ulysses]

28. dingdingdingdingding!

:thumbsup:

[tblue37]

19. K&R (n/t)

[barbtries]

20. oh my daily outrage

i was unaware of the overt racism/elitism written into the law. it sickens me. it's the twenty fucking first century for gawdsake and we're still putting labels on children?

[proud2BlibKansan]

31. This is the worst part of this damn law, IMO

Here's how it works - only the subgroups are held accountable. If your school doesn't have at least 30 minority kids, or free lunch kids or kids who don't speak English or special ed kids, you have nothing to worry about under NCLB. Every single white, English speaking, non poor, non disabled kid in your school can fail the test and the federal government doesn't give a shit. But if any of your subgroups fail, you lose federal funding and a bunch of other draconian penalties descend upon you.

So move to the burbs, keep these subgroup kids out of your school and you don't need to give a thought to NCLB.

Sucks, doesn't it?

[barbtries]

35. i can hardly believe it,

it sucks so hard. i begin to lose hope in humanity behind terrible policies such as this: and they made it a law and sold it as a good thing. speaks very poorly of us as a people.

[Kadie]

21. K&R n/t

[Mutineer]

22. The states DO have to provide

stats on white, non-ESL, and non-poverty students as part of the legislation. Not sure where you got your info from but any teacher can tell you that.

[proud2BlibKansan]

25. I am a teacher and I am not denying that

These parents are upset with a school that is only doing what it is legally required to do. I thought I made that clear in the OP.

[tom_paine]

27. Can you see it yet? Those who said the Bushies were the New Nazis WERE NOT EXAGGERATING

Funny how these bastards come up with new terms for the oldest bullshit.

"Subgroups".

:puke:

[tbyg52]

30. Well, actually

We call them "subpops" where I am from, and it means are *all* your children being taught, not just the white middle/upper class. It's one of the few things about NCLB that I do agree with.

[proud2BlibKansan]

32. You agree it is okay to hold the subgroups to a higher standard

than the kids who aren't in subgroups? Wow. Amazing.

[Mutineer]

34. Your original post wasn't clear.

it implied that statistics weren't kept on other student sub-groups. If a white sub-group failed, or a non-poverty group, and in some schools that does happen, okay it's very rare, but it does happen, wouldn't the school or district also have to inform parents just the way they do with minority groups, etc.? Sure it's upsetting to know that your kid's school has failed in a certain area but I'd want to know if it were me.

That's not to say that I don't think that we need to do more to give children in disadvantaged circumstances and in racial subgroups an additional push be it early kindergarten or extra assistance throughout the rest of their school career. That to me is the one advantage if there are said to be any in NCLB is that it lets parents know what schools and what groups of students are having trouble. The goals the schools are forced to aspire to are unreasonable and without adequate funding impossible to reach but at least it gives solid evidence that being a member of a racial minority or being poor do put students at an educational disadvantage. There is no arguing with stats.

[roody]

38. Do you know that these test are norm referenced, and

one half of the kids have to be below average? It does not matter how much they know.

[proud2BlibKansan]

41. The law is pretty math challenged

that's for sure.

[proud2BlibKansan]

39. The only subgroups held accountable under NCLB are

minorities
special ed
free and reduced lunch
non English speaking

Under the law, the other kids' progress does not matter. A school does not make AYP if a SUBGROUP fails.

So schools in the burbs with a majority white English speaking non poor population are not held accountable. A subgroup is 30 kids. So if these schools don't have at least 30 special ed kids, they get off entirely.

Yes, schools do have to report the test scores of ALL their kids, but the penalties only kick in when the SUBGROUPS fail.

As a special ed teacher in an urban school district, I have been screaming as loudly as I can about this portion of the law since it was enacted. It is unfair to hold SOME schools and SOME kids accountable and not ALL. And we both know that the kids in these subgroups are the most vulnerable, the most likely to fail and the ones who need the resources of the federal govt the most. Yet they are the only ones penalized.

My students are disabled and the vast majority will NEVER be proficient. Yet they are expected to take the same tests as their non-disabled peers and score at a proficient level or my entire school is penalized. That is insane.

Many states have standards that ALL schools must meet. But NCLB does not penalize ALL kids equally. That's why it is so bad and needs to be abolished.

I won't argue with any of your points about the needs of disadvantaged kids. I also don't disagree that we need to be held accountable. But it needs to be fair and equitable. As it stands now, it is not.

[tbyg52]

46. I had heard about that provision kicking in for special ed

and I think it is ridiculous. I also think it's glaring proof that the *real* goal of all this is to put public schools out of business.

Was not aware that the white/non-economically-disadvantaged subpop could not affect your school's rating negatively (which is what I thought I read). I had thought that *all* subpops must meet the standard....?

[tbyg52]

44. I am not aware that they are held to a *higher* standard

As far as I know, all are held to the *same* standard. And, as far as I understand it, *all* kids are in "subpops." It just means breaking the scores out by ethnicity and economic disadvantage so as to try to ensure that your fantastic rating isn't based solely on the kids with money for tutors, a stable home life, etc., while the others drop off the radar. (Of course I think all kids should have those things, but in this world not all do.)

This is *not* to defend the extreme emphasis placed on one single standardized test. *That* is the problem.

[blues90]

33. Why can't we just go back to the way public schools used to be ?

For fucks sake , this is insane with some completely screwed up school system where no one will learn a thing and teachers who are well meaning suffer with low pay and all sorts of crap that is needless .

What a waste of time this all is trying to fix something that can never work no matter what is done . Like pushing a wheel barrow on concrete uphill without a tire .

[and-justice-for-all]

37. "No child left behind"....Let's see here

1: make big speech where I blow smoke up peoples asses
2: Cut the funding.

Yep, that is the rethug agenda.

[defendandprotect]

43. Destroying education and reintroducing racism -- -- -- !!!

And, in one of the programs . . . when a school fails to meet standards . . . they have to enter a program called COW -- "Curriculum On Wheels" -- WHICH THEY MUST PAY FOR . . . .

And it's run by Neil Bush -- !!!!
This is in NJ --

[MadHound]

45. Good to see that NCLB and "progress" are continuing unabated.

:sarcasm:

NCLB is nothing more than a way to destroy our public school system in favor of a privatized, for profit system of schooling, one that will pay out less and do less for our children.

NCLB is up for renewal, it is time for us to write our reps and demand that it goes away. It is going to do a world of hurt not only to a generation of children, but to our country as a whole.