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Latiffany Shine English 1102 Keaton April 3, 2013 Joining the conversation

Cast List: K. Randolph D. Wilson-Younger T. Smyth W. Popham J. Jennings S. Rentner G. Bush

Scene 1: The scene takes place with seven young writers stranded on the island of the damned; their plane crashed after the pilot had suffered from a severe heart attack. He was drinking massive quantities of Red Bulls and Monsters in hopes of staying awake and enduring a 24hour flight to Paris. The writers were invited to attend a round table discussion about education, more specifically the No Child Left Behind Act and how it has positively and negatively affected the American school system. As they sat in the cold mystic sand shocked from the tragic event, a figure had a rose from a cloud of dust and darkness. The smoke filled their lungs, burning the inside of their throats making it hard to breath and blinded their eyes. As the dark figure crept closer, the writers began to tremble. Tiffany [Fades in from the smoke, walks slowly towards the writers] Good evening everyone, I bet you are wondering why you are here, and what you all have in common Randolph

Latiffany Shine English 1102 Keaton April 3, 2013 Joining the conversation [Cuts off Tiffany] Yeah, yeah we know, we are all infamous authors who wrote about the No Child Left Behind Act that was implemented under the Bush administration in 2001, in order to help improve test scores, close the achievement gap, and several other items in the field of education. And we are here because our pilot died and the plane crashed. Tiffany You are wrong and if you cut me off again, there will be a problem. First, your pilot was murdered, and I apologize for that. Second, you are all here because we chose you to be contestants on Dont Get Burned. The object of the game is to talk about a topic for 10minutes with no interruptions if you stop, you will be thrown into the enteral pit of flames [Everyone gasps] and yes, your topic is what you are known for, and the game starts NOW! Bush [Stutters slightly, with a confused look on his face] For the sake of choosing a topic, we can talk about the No Child Left Behind Act, and turn it into a round table discussion. Randolph Thank you captain obvious for reciting another chapter in the book of Duh [presses the palm of his hand into his face and shakes his head] you just repeated what Tiffany already told us. Bush [Completely ignores Randolph and continues on with his thoughts] We can focus on the one or more of the key goals of the Act, which include: Improving academic performance of disadvantage students, improving teacher quality, helping limited English proficient students to

Latiffany Shine English 1102 Keaton April 3, 2013 Joining the conversation English Fluency, providing impact aid, and encouraging accountability. Jennings, lets begin with your research on the improvement of academic performance. Jennings [Hesitantly begins the conversation] I focused my research on the top aspects of the No Child Left Behind Act that impacted the education system the most. The NCLB implemented high stakes testing, which forces schools to raise their test scores and to meet the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). It has been noted that scores on state test have increased. These are in the main subjects of reading and mathematics, and nearly 3/4ths of the states/school districts and the achievement gaps are becoming narrow or staying consistent. Popham [continues the conversation with reassurance and conviction] Dont let those statistics fool you; yes, the scores of several schools have slightly increased, however, the quality of our education has gone down. Children are losing the ability to indulge themselves in a liberal curriculum and the classroom is being transformed into a facility that is based solely on testing. Smyth Not only is curricular content being thrown out, but the NCLB has negatively affected students. For a child of a low social economic status, they tend to attend schools that lack the funding to have the materials to participate in the high stakes testing aspect of NCLB. States and schools that are highly populated with minorities and Limited English Proficient students (LEP) cannot report their Adequate Yearly Progress report, and therefore they receive low marks and reduced funding. These factors clearly show that the NCLB is flawed.

Latiffany Shine English 1102 Keaton April 3, 2013 Joining the conversation Wilson-Younger Yes, to coincide with your idea, I found that most school districts are frustrated because Congress has not given them the funds to provide the necessary services demanded by the act. This led many teachers to believe in the possibility that the NCLB could be potentially biased against diverse and disabled students because schools are losing their federal funding, due to their failure to show their AYP results. Statistics shows that these schools are racially diverse or have low economic status students. Tiffany You guys are conversing a lot about the high stakes testing, and how it plays a critical role in the childs learning, as well as the schools funding. I propose a question, how does it affect the teachers and parents? What are the benefits to it? Renter In regards to your question about teacher quality, according to the Center on Education Policy, 88% of school districts reported that by the end of 2005-2006 school year, all their teachers of core academic subjects would have met the NCLB definition of highly qualified. Randolph Its true, A highly qualified teacher is considered to be a certified teacher, who is proficient in the subject he or she is teaching. According to the act, school should only employ paraprofessionals who have completed at least two years of college, obtained an associates degree, and can prove through testing that they are capable of assisting in reading, writing and math. Wilson-Younger

Latiffany Shine English 1102 Keaton April 3, 2013 Joining the conversation To elaborate on the parents perceptive, a survey that I have conducted shows that parents are pleased with this requirement. This also caused several school systems to reevaluate their teachers and have them go back to receive higher education. Smyth Unfortunately, there is more to that story than what meets the eye. Yes, it is good that we are having more highly qualified teachers, however, there are numerous schools who did not meet these standards and in 2008 when president Obama was elected he pardoned hundreds of schools for their inability to meet this requirement. Jennings The schools that were pardoned, however, were schools that are heavily diverse and do receive low funding. But these schools are still doing well in meeting the other standards of the NCLB, such as improving the scores of students who have limited English proficiency. Across the nation, these scores have increased by 10%, therefore teachers and school systems are doing something right. Tiffany [Thinks quietly to herself ,as the authors continue their conversation, almost as if a soliloquy is taking place] You are all correct there are several different ways to look at the NCLB. From experience with going through the school system, and then becoming a highly successful game show host, I have noticed a lot of different changes in the way we are taught. At my old school, there were classes strictly for students who had English as a second language to help them learn. There was a vast increase in technology, like smart boards, and clickers to take pop quizzes. I

Latiffany Shine English 1102 Keaton April 3, 2013 Joining the conversation have teachers who have studied their field for several years acquiring first hand experiences and knowledge to pass on to students. Unfortunately, with the NCLB, in certain classes like math, several teacher strictly taught what was going to be on the final state mandated exam, rather than showing us how to use these applications in the real world. It seemed as though the creative aspect and the world applications were taken out of the course, and it became test and score regulated ... and .[sneezes] Everyone [everyone stops their conversation abruptly] Bless you [there is an awkward pause that creates silence] Tiffany ..you guys just disrupted and ended your conversation sorry

Latiffany Shine English 1102 Keaton April 3, 2013 Joining the conversation Work Cited Bush, G. W. (2001). No child left behind : communication from the President of the United States transmitting a report for nationwide education reform entitled, No child left behind. Washington : U.S. G.P.O., 2001. Jennings, J., & Rentner, D. S. (2006). Ten big effects of the No Child Left Behind Act on public schools. Phi Delta Kappan, 88(2), 110. Popham, W. J. (2004). America's "failing" schools: How parents and teachers can cope with No Child Left Behind. New York: RoutledgeFalmer. Randolph, K., & Wilson-Younger, D. (2012). "Is No Child Left Behind Effective For All Students?" Parents Don't Think So. Online Submission Smyth, T. (2008). Who Is No Child Left Behind Leaving Behind?. Clearing House: A Journal Of Educational Strategies, Issues And Ideas, 81(3), 133-137.

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