[MCP] civilrights.org: 'No Child' Leaves Too Much Behind

[Dr. Barbara J. Love]

Thank you Sherry.

Recent news stories about the millions being made by one of the Bush
brothers  from the testing industry, funded and backed by certain Saudi
companies, has indeed been interesting reading.

Barbara love


-----Original Message-----
From: mcp-bounces at edchange.org [mailto:mcp-bounces at edchange.org] On Behalf
Of Sherry York
Sent: Wednesday, October 11, 2006 11:30 AM
To: 'Multicultural Pavilion's discussion group on equity, social justice,and
multicultural education.'
Subject: Re: [MCP] civilrights.org: 'No Child' Leaves Too Much Behind

Barbara J. Love wrote: 
I would love to be proven wrong in my fear about the underlying reason for
NCLB.  NCLB remains largely an "unfunded" mandate. The data collection part
of NCLB is the only part that has been consistently enforced.  What other
reasons are there for its existence?  

Barbara, one pertinent reason for the existence of NCLB is that the test
producers of those standardized tests that are the basis of NCLB are making
HUGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY testing all those students over and over again, year
after year and providing data. 

I was an educator when Texas began testing first basic skills, then
essential skills, and on and on it went. Vast amounts of money were spent on
the tests, which teachers, librarians, and counselors were responsible for
administering and for which they were paid nothing. The companies are very
likely making more money from testing than from textbooks because there are
SO MANY tests given SO FREQUENTLY. 

There is information "out there" about the testing companies that are the
power behind NCLB if one cares to research that issue. Your tax dollars are
funding NCLB and making some testing companies ever richer. 

Is there racism and prejudice at the basis of NCLB? Without a doubt, but the
overall background motives are purely monetary, and political, of course!  

This cynical analysis comes from a retired teacher and school librarian who
was around when the standardized testing juggernaut was born in Texas. I was
also one of the educators who had to take a test after more than twenty
years as a teacher and librarian to prove that I was competent!  Since I had
a masters degree in English and another in school administration, I was able
to pass that test so I got to keep working!    :-) 

Sherry 
Sherry York
Reviewer  Writer
Editorial Consultant
School Librarian (retired)
Picture Books by Latino Writers
Children's and Young Adult Literature by Latino Writers
Children's and Young Adult Literature by Native Americans
Ethnic Book Awards
 
-----Original Message-----
From: mcp-bounces at edchange.org [mailto:mcp-bounces at edchange.org] On Behalf
Of Dr. Barbara J. Love
Sent: Tuesday, October 10, 2006 8:42 PM
To: 'Multicultural Pavilion's discussion group on equity, social justice,and
multicultural education.'
Subject: Re: [MCP] civilrights.org: 'No Child' Leaves Too Much Behind

I do indeed hope that this disaggregation of the data and highlighting of
"gaps' between the achievement of students from different groups forces
educators to recognize the need for multicultural education.

My fear is that this is one step in the next wave of "scientific proof" that
'white people'  possess "superior intelligence".  My fear is that this is
part of a movement to prove, once and for all, with the accumulation of
"disaggregated data", that some groups just aren't as "intelligent" as
'white people.'   

Am I a conspiracy theorist?  Do I believe that the "Bell Curve" wars are
over?  
I don't have to be a conspiracy theorist.  The idea of the superiority of
whiteness was first proposed in the early years of the development of the
United States.  Since that time, there have been successive waves of efforts
to "scientifically prove" the "superiority of whiteness."  

I would love to be proven wrong in my fear about the underlying reason for
NCLB.  NCLB remains largely an "unfunded" mandate. The data collection part
of NCLB is the only part that has been consistently enforced.  What other
reasons are there for its existence?  

Barbara Love



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