"No Child Left Behind Legislation

[noonereal]

requires districts that take federal funds to provide directory information of all secondary level students to military recruiters."

Legislation gone wrong or it's great?

Why schools should be required to furnish the military with prospective soldiers seems wrong to me. I have no problem with having all citizens serve two years but this is just wrong.

[Twodogs]

Sounds like bullshit to me too.

[soundhound]

i have a problem with requiring all citizens to serve for two years. that's not freedom. nor is every american cut out for military service.

the military actively recruits high school students. that is a gross understatement. the military practically throws hookers through the windows of young americans, promising them the moon and the stars to get them to enlist.

the "no child left behind" legislation is wonderful in spirit, but is terrible in practice. as a public high school teacher, there is no greater wish than to provide every student with an excellent education, however the legislation put tremendous demands on educators while providing them with nothing (particularly funding) in order to enable them to accomplish the task. in essence, all the legislation does is to create unnecessary stress on educators to accomplish the impossible, particulary with the current rules and resources. you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink. the same is true for students. you can provide the service, but you can't force the student to accept it. not to mention external factors.

i teach in a school where the student population is comprised of nearly 100% economically challenged students. there are so many factors that hinder teachers from educating all of them to their fullest potentials, most importantly the parental factor. crowded classrooms, limited teaching tools, a serious decline in student morality, lack of student concern, the list goes on and on.

there are very, very few educators in the field who are not giving their all.

[Grumpy]

As the parent of a child who graduated HS and could only read on a 5th grade level all I can say is schools today only think about where their next dollars come from. Not the well being or sending of a child well prepared out in to this harsh world.

[noonereal]

Originally Posted by soundhound

in essence, all the legislation does is to create unnecessary stress on educators .

Can you expand on this?

Thanks

[JJIII]

It seems to me that 2 years service could be in fields other than the military. There are community needs, forestry needs, medical needs, and the list goes on. It also seems to me that 2 years may give some people time to realize how important higher education is. Along with that would also come a higher work ethic, not to mention a sense of belonging to a larger community, namely the USA. I may be biased because I was drafted during the Vietnam Era and I value what I learned in the Army highly. I doubt that I would be the person I am without that experience.

[noonereal]

Originally Posted by JJIII

It seems to me that 2 years service could be in fields other than the military. .

Absolutely.

I think your comment about bonding us all together is insightful and a very positive element of universal service.

[soundhound]

Originally Posted by Grumpy

As the parent of a child who graduated HS and could only read on a 5th grade level all I can say is schools today only think about where their next dollars come from. Not the well being or sending of a child well prepared out in to this harsh world.

grumpy, believe me when i say that i feel your pain. but understand that this is, for the most part, NOT the fault of the teachers. the system is just totally screwed. teachers are under tremendous pressure to pass the children, whether or not they have mastered the skills. i know, because i have been fired from a teaching position because i had too many students failing my class, and because i told their parents the true reasons why. the reasons the children were failing were irrelevant to the school administration. they just want you to get the children on through the system without making any fuss. ask any of your school board members why your child has a high school diploma, but a 5th grade reading level, and see what kind of bullshit you get. they'll blow so much smoke up your ass your eyes will turn grey.

i taught geometry last year. over half of my students came to me without first passing the state algebra test. you can't do the work in geometry without algebra skills. i had students who did not know their times tables, could not add, subtract, multiply, or divide without a calculator, and not very well with one. i've actually had a student who could not tell me what 2 plus 2 was! my students will not even attempt to solve a problem that involves fractions or decimals. a lot of them can't even read an analog clock. at the midterm mark, i had approximately 80% of my students failing. i had to pad their grades. if i had not done so, i would have been swamped with endless superflous paperwork, placed on a teacher improvement program (which only creates more superflous paperwork), and if i had reached the end of the school year with so high a failure rate, i would not have recommended for contract renewal. i hated it, but i have bills to pay, so i did what i had to do.

that, combined with other such woes, has me on the verge of leaving the field, as do MOST other new teachers in their first five years of service. i honestly feel that i am getting paid to babysit, there is nothing i can do about it, and it is driving me nuts.

this year, i am teaching ACT/SAT prep. my classes are loaded with around 30 9th graders who are not performing at grade level, read on a first grade level, and for the most part, don't care to improve. in order for these kids to successfully complete my course, i would have to teach them all the skills they are lacking when they arrive (about 9 years worth), algebra I, geometry, algebra II, biology, chemisty, biology II, English I, II, III, and IV, and all in a half year. it's just not possible. yet i will go to work each day giving the best effort i can muster, and come home each day to work another 2-3 hours planning and grading. that is if i don't have a nervous breakdown and quit before the term is over.

most of the teachers who are in the classrooms now are veterans with only a few years left until retirement. almost all of them hate their jobs, but they are NOT going to make waves. they can't afford to. 9 out of 10 of the young teachers will leave teaching soon, that is as soon as they figure out that there is nothing they can do about it.

if my school district figures out that i wrote this, i will be fired.

[soundhound]

Originally Posted by noonereal

Can you expand on this?

Thanks

briefly, the legislation requires that schools increase the level of education given to their students over what they have been doing, but provides no resources to enable them to accomplish the goal.

[soundhound]

Originally Posted by JJIII

It seems to me that 2 years service could be in fields other than the military. There are community needs, forestry needs, medical needs, and the list goes on. It also seems to me that 2 years may give some people time to realize how important higher education is. Along with that would also come a higher work ethic, not to mention a sense of belonging to a larger community, namely the USA. I may be biased because I was drafted during the Vietnam Era and I value what I learned in the Army highly. I doubt that I would be the person I am without that experience.

i thank you for your service to my country.

i do not support the draft.

i also served, a tour in the navy as a sonar technician. i volunteered.

however, i don't agree with you. i feel that it would be grand if all americans served their country in some capacity for two years or longer, but i would want them to be forced into it.