About Education Goals and No Child Left Behind?

By Bonnie Weidel

We have some revising to do with educational goals, how to achieve our goals and meeting the needs of each child. The problem is more urgent than we realize.

We have yet to see if they mean no gates on the standards or less testing for teacher evaluations or student ability measured by right answers to proscribed data. Or firing of teachers who don't show enough high scores. Or turning public schools into private charter-run schools.

What would I LIKE to see? What do I HOPE might happen?

• *Kids mastering materials by hands-on-learning or project based learnings which lock in facts, provides demonstrable and tangible products to evaluate and enables the process of problem solving.
• *Teachers able to respond to the unique and individual needs of each child's learning style and ability.
• *Teachers set free from the constraints of "teaching to the test" so they can focus on developing concepts in a rounded, experience based process during which they themselves grow.
• *Districts set free from being evaluated on the scores of the students so that principals and curriculum coordinators are able to step outside a rigid evaluation process to build insight.

  AND

• *REAL funds.