Culpepper Star-Exponent (Virginia)
April 14, 2011
HEADLINE: OUR VIEW: NCLB paints many schools in unfair light

Pearl Sample Elementary is one of the many public schools across America that hasn't met its Adequate Yearly Progress goals thanks to increasingly rigid standards set by the unpopular Bush-era No Child Left Behind Act.

Because of Pearl Sample's perceived inadequacies, replacing all or most of the staff, including the principal, is just one of several options available for the Culpeper County School Board in order to help the school reach its yearly goals. Thankfully, a less harsh course of action is being considered.

One of the worst aspects of NCLB is the ridiculous amount of weight put on the Standards of Learning exams.

It's almost as if students are being taught that meaningful learning is retaining just enough knowledge to regurgitate it onto a scan sheet when it's time to take the test.

In theory, NCLB's goal - making sure all demographic subgroups of students pass standardized tests - sounds noble. The problem is, requiring a 100 percent pass rate for each student by 2014 is not only impossible on a consistent basis, it's a distraction that paints adequate schools in a bad light.

Our federally elected officials should start thinking about replacing, or seriously tweaking, the increasingly unattainable standards set forth by NCLB. Until then, good schools will continue to suffer.

- In a more positive school-related story, high school students at Culpeper and Eastern View have more than 50 college scholarship options to choose from this year. Young men and women are prepared to put their educations into practice in college, so why not do everything we possibly can to help them get there? For the complete list, type "scholarship options" into the StarExponent.com search bar.