August 31, 2007 in Opinion

Our View: Act of Congress

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As students load up their backpacks again this fall, Congress will be studying the No Child Left Behind Act.

It’s time for its reauthorization, and local school officials, like many across the country, hope for changes that can reduce the law’s complexities, its seeming lack of logic, and its punishing stance.

Last week a preliminary report showed that seven Spokane-area schools failed to measure up. These schools – Glover Middle School, North Central High School, Bancroft School and the Bryant Center in Spokane, Mead Alternative High School, West Valley’s Contract-Based Education and Central Valley’s University High School – have not made “adequate yearly progress.”

Local school administrators pointed out that it was often the test scores of special education students that managed to sink an individual school’s success.

That’s one of the more difficult parts of this law to grasp. Proponents point out that students in special education programs should be tested, too, because they’re also capable of learning. But critics demand better ways of making sure special education students face tests appropriate to the nature of their particular disability.

Certainly, that idea deserves an A.

In addition, the school evaluators should focus on how the results are compiled and, even more important, how this information can be used to strengthen the scores of weaker students.

Currently, the test results of this year’s fourth-graders are compared with those of last year’s class. It would be more meaningful to look at this year’s fourth-grade scores along with those of the same class last year in the third grade. By measuring an individual class’s progress over time, school evaluators will have a stronger picture of whether the students are continuing to learn.

The federal law sets up a list of sanctions against low-income schools where children aren’t learning, which can result in students being transferred to other schools. Yet most schools cater to students who live nearby and need a strong neighborhood school.

There are a number of ways the federal government could help a particular weak school. They might include helping colleges and school districts better train teachers, focusing on more research about the best ways to reach disabled students and sharing the best and most innovative practices nationwide.

The goal of all children becoming proficient in reading and math by 2014 reminds us that all children deserve a high-quality education, and that the federal government has a significant role to play.

Now Congress must resolve to make adequate progress this year itself.

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