The No Child Left Behind Act - Is it Really Helping Our Children?

You wake them early so they can have a healthy breakfast. You dress them warmly so they do not catch a cold. You walk them to the bus stop to ensure their safety. You give your child the best possible start to achieve success. But are the schools doing the same? Are the schools striving to teach your children or is it failing them at education. It seems as though as the years pass, the government wants our children to know more. Yet the school districts and teachers seem to be lacking in the drive to teach our children.

Years ago, this was not the case. People became teachers to educate the world. Now it seems as though their becoming teachers for the pay, benefits, and to have summers off. There are some good true teachers left, but with all the new rules and guidelines being pushed on the school districts by the government their hands are pretty much tied.

The No Child Left Behind Act was signed in early 2002 by President Bush. In theory, it is a good thing. Making sure every child is provided with the education they deserve no matter what their learning ability or income may be. But that is not the case. The government offers bonuses and monetary incentives to the states that have the school districts that meet and exceed the accountability requirements. School districts that have made the greatest improvements in the achievements of students are offered bonuses.

So even though money was supposed to be taken out of the equation for our children's education it is still there. The Federal Government pushes the state to do well by offering incentives and threatening to reduce federal funding. The state pushes the school districts to do better of state testing for fear of loosing that funding. The school districts push the teachers to have students study and cram for these tests. In addition, the teachers push the students to study for the tests, even though the tests are supposed to be on what the student should already know not how hard they can study for a test? When does this leave time for a real education? When does it leave time for actual learning?

With knowing all this, it makes you wonder who is really looking out for our children's education. They seem to be at the bottom of the food chain and the ones with the most to loose. Everyone's child deserves to have a free education but it appears even that has a price tag.