"andrel" <a_l### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message 
news:47E### [at] hotmailcom...
> Mike Raiford wrote:
>> Jim Charter wrote:
>>
>>> I lasted just four days tutoring in the "No child left behind" effort.
>>>
>>> Personally, I've never looked back.
>>
>> Hmmm. 'No child left behind' My wife was going on about all of the 
>> paperwork she was required to file due to this act. I jokingly called it 
>> the 'No Piece of Paper Left Behind' act.
>>
>> She was telling me yesterday, that by some year (I think 4 years from 
>> now, 2012) all students must pass standardized testing, or teachers could 
>> lose their jobs. I replied by stating that it was asinine to think that 
>> the teacher's performance should be judged by the student's performance 
>> on a test. There are MANY more factors that go into the performance of a 
>> child in addition to the teacher. You can't help those who are not 
>> willing to be helped. Parents who refuse to be involved in their child's 
>> education and well being are far more detrimental to that child's ability 
>> to learn than a teacher who gave her best effort in the classroom.
> Solutions:
> - pass on poor (performing) students to other schools
> - try to be more attractive to students from good neighbourhoods/wealthy 
> parents.
> - let the poor performing fail the year before the test
> - proclaim the poor performing students ill during the test period
> - take many disciplinary actions for futile offenses until they 
> 'voluntary' leave school before the test.
> - ...
>
> At least the first four options are actually used in some form in the 
> Netherlands to increase the rating of the school.

    I would say: Introduce competition between schools much like our 
football leagues here in the UK. Give the pupils something to be proud of 
and to work for - a challenge. Have league tables. Give them incentive/s. If 
they are in a school that does *very* well, then that pupil has a better 
option of getting a good job and earning more money when they leave. If the 
school doesn't do well, then the pupils are on the scrap-heap and not the 
teachers.

   I wish that was in place when I was young.

     ~Steve~

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