No Child Left Behind

The current state of education in the United States is approaching pitiful. By teaching towards the test and always reaching for just above the passing line, our school standards are set way too low. Accountability tests like Texas’s TAKS test should not be used as a measure of whether or not our schools are doing a good job of educating our children. To graduate from high school, students basically only have to pass a test that elementary school children from many other European nations could easily pass.

However, this brings up a good point. America educates all children and even makes sure that “No Child (is) Left Behind.” Sadly, this also seems to mean that exceptionally bright children are not given much of a chance to succeed and be the best that they can be in most public schools. How far are we lowering the bar so that “No Child (is) Left Behind?” A very small proportion of public school funding goes to gifted and talented programs or AP classes. It often seems that children who try very hard in school and are succeeding are being ignored rather than rewarded. Here are several examples:

In middle school, I remember taking the TAAS practice test at the beginning of the year to see if the students were on track. Students that failed or were very close to failing that test were required to attend weekly tutoring. Then, at the end of the semester, those students that finished tutoring got to go on a special field trip to Six Flags Over Texas. Why were those students that passed the first time not rewarded?

My junior year of high school, students that earned all A’s for the semester on their report card were treated to an ice cream party. The vice principal would come to the students classes, take those students into the hall and tell them that they had earned an ice cream party, but to not tell the other students so the other students would not feel bad. So now, those students that had done well had to treat their success like it was a secret to be hidden from the rest of the school rather than celebrated. What kind of message are we sending there?

Too much of our public school funding is going to sports programs or fancy school buildings instead of being focused on what is really important: education. The one thing the students really need to be motivated and succeed is creative teachers that are willing to put in the extra effort to make sure their students care about learning. To attract people like this to work in the education field, we need to allot more money to teacher’s salaries.