The irony of the nonexistence of consistent national standards is depicted in this three-part allegorical blog on the No Child Left Behind Act.
Note: This is the third blog in a series of three critiquing the No Child Left Behind Act.
The teacher’s heart was suddenly filled with a sense of helpless dread, as she knew the young boy was correct.
“We must cross the threshold of statehood,” he replied, and by merely touching her hand, the class was suddenly transported to a neighboring state where the academic standards and expectations were far lower.
“I can finish my test now,” the boy said in an assured voice.
As the boy took his seat, the teacher’s mind was racing for a logical explanation for what had just happened; but there was none to be found.
The children all finished their tests at exactly the same instant, and as if by some powerful subterfuge, their exams were all scored as they sat silently and watched their teacher with appreciative eyes. She raced down the aisles grabbing the papers and staring at the grades.
While some might have received poor scores in her previous state, now their grades were just dandy, and she was a good teacher again, and the children had all learned their lessons and were making Adequate Yearly Progress.
Joy had returned!
The Big Conclusion
We hope that you all have enjoyed today’s scholastic allegory for the peculiar federal system that punishes states with higher academic expectations and standards. While we would love to tell you that this tale is entirely imaginary, in the new dimension of the No Child Left Behind Act, the argument is that states should set their own educational standards rather than having a national curriculum because they pay for a lot of their students’ education.
Not even Rod Serling in his heyday could paint a tableau this macabre.
