The No Child Left Behind Act

1
The No Child Left Behind Act

• Possible Areas of Reform and the Impact of the
  Act on
• Latinos
• Craig de Mariana Aleman

2
Project Significance

• NCLB The education of our children, our future.
  Criticisms associated with the Act are equally
  important as the Act itself
• The study highlights the potential impact on
  Latinos, the largest ethnic minority group in the
  US

3
Foundations of the NCLB Act

• Greater accountability
• Record flexibility
• Improved classrooms
• Empowered parents

4
Greater Accountability

• States Must
• Establish Academic Standards
• Define their starting point
• Define Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)
• Reach 100 proficiency in reading/math by 2014
• Test annually in grades 3-8 and at least once
  during grades 10-12

5
Greater Accountability

• Results of assessments are disaggregated
• Economically disadvantaged students
• Gender
• Racial or ethnic minority students
• Students with migrant status
• Students with disabilities
• Students with limited English proficiency (LEP
  students)
• Each cell must meet AYP, and report cards are
  issued

6
When Schools Are in Need of Improvement

• 1-2 years parents can opt for a transfer or
  request supplemental services
• 4 years schools must replace staff, revamp the
  curriculum, or hire an outside expert
• 6 years the district or state must take over or
  convert the school to a charter school
• Research suggests city takeovers are most
  effective

7
Record Flexibility

• 4 Major State Grants
• Teacher Quality Grant
• Educational Technology Grant
• Innovated Programs Grant
• Safe and Drug Free Schools Grant
• States and LEAs can transfer up to 50 of the
  funding they receive under the grants to any one
  of the programs or to Title I grant.

8
Improving Classrooms

• Highly qualified teachers in every core classroom
• Scientifically backed methods of teaching
• Improved technology in the classroom

9
Empowering Parents

• Parents are informed
• Can request transfers out of failing schools
• Can request supplemental services for child
• Option of transferring child to charter school

10
Criticisms Associated With Accountability

• Implementation is under-funded
• Connecticut and Vermont studies vs. federal
  studies
• States create their own playing field
• Set their own academic goals
• Establish their own starting points
• Define AYP

11
Criticisms Associated With Accountability

• 12 years is not long enough to meet proficiency
  levels
• Rural Schools in states like Alaska, Maine and
  Montana cannot reasonably accommodate transfer of
  a child to another location

12
Criticisms Associated With Improving Classrooms

• Quality teacher retention is difficult
• Average salary 43,000
• Unions appose differential pay, even in areas
  such as science, math, and special education
• Reluctance to incorporate innovational teaching
  methods and the arts into classrooms

13
Criticisms Associated With Improving Classrooms

• Save social studies!
• Focus is on reading, language arts, and science
• Hard to align research-based textbooks with
  states standards
• Many companies align their textbooks with biggest
  buyers, California and Texas

14
Is Every Child A Soldier ?

• Buried in the 670 page act is a paragraph stating
  that schools must deliver students personal
  information to the US Military
• Schools could lose federal funding if they refuse
• 30 years of guarding high school students info
  is at an end

15

• The No Child Left Behind Act and its Impact on
• Latinos

16
Latino Stats

• 1 in 3 Latinos fail to complete high school
• Only 10 graduate from 4 year colleges, with
  fewer than 100,000 annually
• Latinos make up about 4 of the graduate school
  population

17
Narrowing Achievement Gaps

• High School Completion Rates () for 18-24
  year-olds by race, ethnicity 1972-2000

18
The Act Opens Flood Gates For Military Recruiters

• The US Military is targeting Latinos
• Roosevelt High School 5 recruiters for every
  guidance counselor
• Many Latinos will pick up a rifle instead of a
  pen

19
Limitations

• Time constraints
• Selective with criticism

20
Acknowledgements

• My mentor, Dr. Joseph Pika
• The McNair Staff and fellow scholars

21
The No Child Left Behind Act

• Possible Areas of Reform and the Acts Impact on
• Latinos
• Craig de Mariana Aleman