The educational community is clearly unsettled by the President's "No
Child Left behind Act" (NCLB) of 2001. Even though one of the strongest
planks of the president's platform was his promise to address the faltering
performance of the US educational system, the resulting bill had sent
shivers of nervous tension up and down the collective educational spine.
Nationally the country looked forward to a president who would do more for
the educational progress of the country than just throw more money at the
system. Nationally, the president's record of reviving faltering education
in his own state gave parents hope that their students would once again be
However, the NCLB act is not written in the fuzzy language, which has
become typical of the educational professionals. It contains objective
standards for academic progress and tangible fiscal consequences for
failure to improve. Schools that do not reach objective educational
standards by the 2008 school year risk loosing federal funds. The
president, in his straight forward Texas style, identified the feelings of
the nation's parents well when he said that educators have been given a
trust. The wellbeing of the nation's children has been entrusted to them.
Educators also are entrusted with a significant amount of federal funding,
and the two resources, children and funds, are given to the public
education system with the expectation that the community will receive back
well educated children who are ready to move into the community as well
educated adults. The president called this a reasonable return on our
According to the government sponsored web center for the NCLB, the
1. create an environment for stronger accountability for results
2. Provide more freedom for states and communities in how they use
3. Encourage schools to pursue, or return to, proven education
4. Give parent...