If there was any doubt remaining, it now ought to be clear that No Child Left Behind (NCLB) is an expensive failure and one that is hurting gifted children.
NCLB is a Failure
After billions of dollars spent, the results of NCLB have hit with a resoundingly dull thud. On October 20, 2005, The Washington Post reported the results from the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). According to the article, "Reading scores among fourth- and eighth-graders showed little improvement over the past two years, and math gains were slower than in previous years ... The disappointing results came despite a new educational testing law championed by the Bush administration as a way to improve the nation's schools."
Gifted Programs are Being Eliminated Because of NCLB
Coincidentally, On October 19, 2005, the Chicago Sun-Times reported that because of NCLB, gifted programs in Illinois are being eliminated. This report reflects what is happining in Illinois, but as an earlier blog entry I posted (Under Funding Gifted Education) noted, this is happening across the courtry.
Simply put, we are eliminating gifted programs across the country to fund a worthless education initiative. When is this going to stop?