CSD Hosts Videoconference on No Child Left Behind
Congressman George Miller provides overview during live event
On October 16, a number of member superintendents and board members from Cooperating School Districts of Greater St. Louis attended a videoconference to discuss the pending reauthorization of No Child Left Behind. The conference was coordinated through the office of Congressman Russ Carnahan. Congressman Carnahan arranged for CSD members to speak with Congressman George Miller, who chairs the House Committee on Education and Labor. This committee is assigned the task of reauthorization of No Child Left Behind.
The meeting began with introductions by Congressman Carnahan, followed by an overview of the progress to date of No Child Left Behind reauthorization by Congressman Miller. Attendees were impressed by his grasp of the problematic core issues that exist in the implementation of the law to date. He also alluded to the political climate that he and his committee need to work through in order to effect positive change in the law. There are a number of key individuals, including the President and current Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings, who are strong supporters of the law in its present form. They particularly object to going to multiple measures of accountability to determine a district’s compliance. It seems Congressman Miller is a strong advocate of multiple measures.
John Cary, Superintendent of Special School District, asked Congressman Miller about issues related to testing and scoring special needs students. The Congressman acknowledged that this was a very sensitive issue and one where he was attempting to modify the present practice. Again, he stated, that there are others who do not necessarily agree that any modifications are necessary.
When asked by Pattonville School District Superintendent Michael Fulton if there will be any consideration given to using multiple measures to determine progress toward NCLB goals, Representative Miller said that consideration is being given, particularly at the high school level. Such things as graduation rates and college/vocational preparation were mentioned.
The Congressman made an excellent point in noting that the federal government only fully funded No Child Left Behind during its first year. Since then, he noted that the federal government was $55 billion behind in its funding obligations for the law. He also noted the federal government’s failure to fulfill its funding promises under IDEA.
Rockwood School District Superintendent Craig Larson asked if any consideration was being given to accounting for differences in difficulty between state tests. This does not appear to be an area that the legislature will address in reauthorization. The Congressman stated that some states with difficult tests simply moved the cut score lower to offset the difficulty of their exams.
Participants in the videoconference came away with a generally good feeling concerning the possibility for positive change in the law. Tom Guenzler, Superintendent of Jefferson R-VII School District said, “It appears that certain factions in Washington are listening to our concerns about No Child Left Behind and are intent on increasing the validity of the process and making the end result more productive for those of us in the trenches. Kudos to Congressman Miller and Congressman Carnahan for caring enough about our children to collaborate with area administrators and members from local boards of education representing diverse needs.”
Craig Larson added, “I was encouraged with the support the Congressman offered to changing NCLB to use multiple indicators to determine the effectiveness of a school or a district. Looking at common sense measures of high school effectiveness, such as graduation rates, college attendance rates, enrollment rates in a college preparatory curriculum, and attendance rates in addition to looking at standardized test scores was particularly encouraging.”
However, we all are aware that political desires and political reality are often two different things. Dave Benson, Superintendent of Ladue School District, summed up the feelings of many when he said, “During the videoconference it was apparent that Congressmen Miller and Carnahan were knowledgeable about educational issues and what needs to change to make NCLB a better law for students, educators and the public. The discussion of political reality of getting something done in this regard was both enlightening and concerning. It seems education continues to be used in the political process at the expense of good educational public policy.”
After listening to Congressman Miller, one fact remains relatively certain; No Child Left Behind will be around in one form or another for many years to come. CSD encourages all of its members to use the easy email contact on its website to get in touch with your congressmen and senators in Washington to let them know the things you would like to see changed in NCLB. The list of suggested changes compiled by CSD member districts can be accessed at http://csd.fesdev.org/vnews/display.v/ART/471e12c521542
