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No Child Left Behind Thesis

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No Child Left Behind Thesis
No Child Left Behind 1

Running head: NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND

The Impact of the No Child Left Behind Act on the K-8 Setting

Kara Robertson

A Senior Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment

of the requirements for graduation

in the Honors Program

Liberty University

Fall 2009

No Child Left Behind 2

Acceptance of Senior Honors Thesis

This Senior Honors Thesis is accepted in partial

fulfillment of the requirements for graduation from the

Honors Program of Liberty University.

______________________________

Shanté Moore-Austin, Ph.D.

Thesis Chair

______________________________

Janice DeLong, M.Ed.

Committee Member

______________________________

Connie McDonald, Ph.D.

Committee Member

______________________________

James Nutter, D.A.

Honors Director

______________________________

Date

No Child Left Behind 3

Abstract

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which was implemented in 2002, is changing the classroom for teachers and students. The legislation is widely discussed across the nation and people are deciding whether or not this change is suitable for education. The No Child Left Behind Act is affecting the core subjects in the classroom. After evaluating literature on the subject, it is obvious that there are two clear sides to this legislation. There are also actions that can be taken by teachers within the classroom to best utilize NCLB. As a future educator, it is important to evaluate NCLB and all it entails as it places a large amount of pressure on teachers and students across America. The purpose of this thesis is to evaluate NCLB and its effect on the K-8 classroom setting specifically in regards to the core subject areas.

No Child Left Behind 4

The Impact of the No Child Left Behind Act on the K-8 Setting

Introduction

Many individuals can recall the K-8 setting as an avenue for teachers to teach with creativity and as an avenue where one’s love for the children



References: Abernathy, S.F. (2007). No child left behind and the public schools. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press. Azzam, A. M., Perkins-Gough, D., & Thiers, N. (2006, November). The impact of NCLB. Educational Leadership, 64(3), 94-96. Retrieved September 20, 2008 from Academic Search Premier database. Bunting, C. (2007, January). Teachers get personal about teaching to survive NCLB. Education Digest, 72(5), 12-15. Retrieved October 13, 2009 from Academic Search Complete database. Finn, C. E. (2007, October 5). Dumbing education down. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved September 25, 2008, from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119154392619949671.html#printMode. Flake, M., Benefield, T., Schwartz, S., Bassett, R., Archer, B., Etter, F., et al. (2006, November). A firsthand look at NCLB. Educational Leadership, 64(3), 48-52. Retrieved September 20, 2008, from Academic Search Complete database. Flinders, D. J. (2005). The failings of NCLB. Curriculum and Teaching Dialogue, 7(1/2), 1-9. Retrieved September 20, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database. Granowsky, A. (2008, October 9-10). No child left behind: A tale of unintended consequences. Paper presented at the LDA Texas Annual State Conference, Austin, TX. Janesick, V.J. (2001). The assessment debate. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO. Manos, M.A. (2009) Opt to take an active role in your child’s education. Phi Kappa Phi Forum, 89(1), 22-23. Retrieved October 5, 2009, from Academic Search Premier database. Martin, D.J. (Ed.). (2004). Elementary science methods: A constructivist approach (4th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth. Mundry, S. (2006). No child left behind: Implications for science education. Teaching Science in the 21st Century (pp. 243-255). National Science Teachers Association. http://search.ebscohost.com. Nichols, S. L. & Berliner, D.C. (2008, March). Testing the joy out of learning. Educational Leadership, 65(6), 14-18. Retrieved September 24, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database. No child left behind act. (2007, October 19). The New York Times. Retrieved September 20, 2008, from http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/n/no_ child_left_behind_act/index.html?scp=1spot&sq=No%20Child%20Left%20Behind%20Act&st=cse. Perkins-Gough, D. (2007, November). Are U.S. students getting better in mathematics? Educational Leadership, 65(3), 91-92. Retrieved September 24, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database. Ravitch, D. (2007, October 3). Get congress out of the classroom. The New York Times. Retrieved September 20, 2008, from No Child Left Behind 30 Ravitch, D. (2009, September). Time to kill ‘no child left behind.’ Education Digest, 75(1), 4-6. Retrieved September 2, 2009, from Academic Search Premier database. Reed, D. (2005, April/May). Marian the librarian meets NCLB. Library Media Connection, 23(7), 56-58. Retrieved September 2, 2009, from Academic Search Premier database. Rosenfield, B. (2004, November). No subject left behind? Think again. NEA Today, 23(3), 26-27. Retrieved September 24, 2009, from Academic Search Premier database. Simpson, R. L., LaCava, P. G., & Graner, P.S. (2004, November). The no child left behind act: Challenges and implications for educators. Intervention in School & Clinic, 40(2), 67-75. Retrieved September 20, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database. Social studies in the era of no child left behind. (2007, September). Social Education, 71(5), 284. Retrieved September 21, 2008, from Academic OneFile database. Toch, T. (2006, November). Turmoil in the testing industry. Educational Leadership, 64(3), 53-57. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database. U.S. Department of Education. (2003, June). No child left behind: A parent’s guide. Retrieved September 8, 2009, from http://www.ed.gov/parents/academic/involve/nclbguide/parentsguide.html. U.S. Department of Education. (2009, March 31). Letters to chief state school officers regarding an update on several NCLB cornerstones. Retrieved September 8, 2009, from http://www.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/cornerstones/index.html#va. Virginia Department of Education. (2007). Standards of learning currently in effect for Virginia public schools. Retrieved September 5, 2009, from Standards of Learning Web Site: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/go/Sols/home.shtml. Zamosky, L. (2008, March). Social studies: Is it history? District Administration, 44(4), 46-50. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.

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