Serious Frustration’

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http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/redir.php?jid=011d192ee8f2346c&cat=c08dd24cec417021

Serious Frustration’
Former Education secretary Dick Riley discusses the pluses—and minuses—of the No Child Left Behind law


WEB EXCLUSIVE
By Carl Sullivan
Newsweek
Updated: 11:59 a.m. ET Feb. 25, 2005Feb. 25 - As George W. Bush prepares to promote extension of his No Child Left Behind Act into America’s high schools, a bipartisan panel of state lawmakers this week said the education law is unconstitutional, deeply flawed and lacks sufficient funding. The National Conference of State Legislators report lauds the goals of the legislation, which sets minimal standards for all children in grades 3-8, but suggests fundamental changes are needed to make the law “more workable.”

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As the “education” governor of South Carolina during the ‘70s and ‘80s, Dick Riley pushed hard to introduce standards in Palmetto State schools. And as President Clinton’s secretary of Education, Riley established national education goals for student competence in math, science, reading and other subjects. NEWSWEEK’s Carl Sullivan recently spoke with Riley about the continuing debate over No Child Left Behind and the heated politics of education. Excerpts:

NEWSWEEK: What did you think of the education provisions in the White House budget proposal?
Dick Riley: I was distressed with the president’s budget. He cut 48 education programs out, and I think that is a real mistake. It’s a time when we should be adding to education programs. We’re adding to the demands on the systems , and I basically support some of that—that you should have accountability and you should have legitimate challenges to the school districts and the schools and the teachers—but when you’re demanding more, it’s not the time to provide less, and that looks to me like the policy they’re adopting.

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Interesting that No Child Left Behind may be ilegal!!!