[EDLING:289] No Child Left Behind Poll

[Francis M. Hult]

Despite Negative Feelings, Administrators Support NCLB Reauthorization

When it comes to the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), administrators
and teachers don't always have the warmest feelings – 63% of
administrators and 77% of teachers have unfavorable attitudes towards
the law, according to a poll recently released by the Educational
Testing Service (ETS). In light of this opposition, 78% of
administrators and 75% of teachers would like to see NCLB
reauthorized
with minor or major changes.

Although more divided on their initial feelings of NCLB (41% have
favorable attitudes, versus 43% unfavorable), the general public falls
into line with teachers and administrators, with 76% favoring
reauthorization with minor or major changes.

The public and administrators again have similar ideas of how to
improve poorly performing schools. Of particular interest to school
leaders, only 25% of the public and 4% of administrators believe
replacing administrators will lead to increased school improvement.
Likewise, 57% of the public, and 61% of administrators believe that
funding should be increased for poorly performing schools.

The public and administrators are not always in such rosy agreement
however – especially when it comes to national testing standards.
According to the poll, 59% of the public believes that Congress
"should make NCLB more uniform by replacing 50 sets of standards with
one set of national standards and tests." Unlike the public,
administrators want more flexibility, with 56% of public school
administrators believing that Congress "should keep [the] system as
is, because it gives [the] federal government school accountability,
but lets states define [the] academic goals in their state."

Another "big picture" finding of the poll comes with regard to English
language learners (ELLs). A majority of the public and administrators
believe that "we should be flexible when it comes to English language
learners. By allowing these students sufficient time to become capable
in English, we are helping build their confidence and giving them an
essential skill needed to be competitive going forward, even if it
means that these students may fall behind their peers somewhat in
other skills such as math and science." At the same time however, the
public is divided over whether to include ELL's NCLB test scores in
their school's overall NCLB score, with 48% believing they should be
included, and 46% believing they should be excluded for at least one
year. On the administrator side, 14% believe the scores should be
included, while 85% believing they should be excluded for at least one
year.

To view key findings, press conference footage, and other information
regarding the ETS report, visit http://www.ets.org/americansspeak.

http://p8.hostingprod.com/@www.principalspolicyblog.org/blog/2007/07/despite_neg
ative_feelings_admi.html