Still “Lying to Children”: How No Child Left Behind Corrupted Education - The Daily Beast

Still “Lying to Children”: How No Child Left Behind Corrupted Education - The Daily Beast:

Still “Lying to Children”: How No Child Left Behind Corrupted Education

Jan 9, 2012 6:53 AM EST

Expecting all students to be college ready is a hopeless utopian goal that inevitably produces test-score inflation and bad results.

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When George W. Bush signed No Child Left Behind legislation into law 10 years ago this week, it seemed like the perfect expression of his brand of “compassionate conservatism,” while also redeeming his campaign pledge to use education reform to overcome “the soft bigotry of low expectations.” NCLB passed Congress by overwhelming bipartisan majorities (87 to 10 in the Senate; 381 to 41 in the House) and a beaming Ted Kennedy stood alongside President Bush at the bill-signing ceremony.

Before NCLB, the federal government had attempted to achieve some degree