I’m strongly against No Child Left Behind. Education isn’t one size fits all, and it isn’t supposed to be. Students have many different educational needs, and they can’t be treated as a collective whole. All students don’t learn at the same pace, and they need to be on the same page before the whole class can move on. Lessons should never be rushed or hurried. Rather, it is important for students to get as much out of them as they can. Unfortunately, many teachers rush through the school day to get in as much test preparation and material as they can.
Every person is capable of learning something in the classroom, but students have individual capabilities and limits. NCLB tries to make students good at everything, but students have their strengths and weaknesses. Teachers need to focus on their students’ strengths and nurture them instead of trying to make students learn about things that are just too hard for them. Students also need to learn things one step at a time, and NCLB causes teachers to have to cram the information into a short period of time instead.
Education needs to tailor to the individual needs of student, not try to make them all learn the same way, which is impossible. There are seven different learning styles, and they all need to be accounted for in the classroom. Not only is NCLB leaving regular students behind, but special education students are being left behind too. Students in special education need to learn how to count change and order food from fast food menus, not arithmetic or algebra. NCLB is great in theory, but it’s not realistically possible. NCLB makes special education students take tests they can’t pass, which ends up hurting regular education students.
NCLB treats students like robots, but students aren’t machines or computers. Students don’t learn by countless hours of skill and drill or repetition; they learn by applying real life experience and using relevant examples. NCLB puts needless stress and pressure on students with high stakes testing. High stakes testing gives them unneeded anxiety, which hinders their performance. Education needs to be individualized to student’s specific interests, especially in high school. Learning needs to be fun and enjoyable, but NCLB only takes the fun out of it. Learning needs to be about enjoyment, skills, goals, and personal progress. Regrettably, NCLB makes learning strictly about standards and testing.
The good news is that The United States is going to get a new president in 2008. Both presidential candidates agree that No Child Left Behind isn’t working the way it is now, and have plans to change and modify the educational policy. While it would be nice if students could all learn the same things and receive the same educational opportunities, teachers and administration need to tailor to each students needs as well. Hopefully the next president will change No Child Left Behind so that each child can have his or her own most important educational needs met.