Lincoln Journal Star: Johanns Prefers State School Assessment
News Article
by Don Walton
Sen. Mike Johanns said Thursday he believes federal no-child-left-behind educational reforms are not working and should give way to state and local standards and assessments.
Johanns said he would not vote for reauthorization of the federal reforms this year without substantial change.
The federal testing and assessment provisions are punitive in nature, he said, and often have turned out to be counterproductive for schools, teachers and students.
"It's all about testing, not about kids," he said.
Johanns, a Republican, said he opposed the Bush administration legislative proposal when he was governor and continues to believe "local and state assessment makes a lot more sense."
A dozen Nebraska school representatives met with Johanns at the Lincoln Public Schools administration building to discuss concerns about the federal mandates.
"It feels, looks, sounds much more about punishment than helping students succeed (and) teachers do better," LPS Superintendent Susan Gourley said.
"It's used as a hammer," Omaha Public Schools Superintendent John Mackiel said.
Testing requirements and penalties do not take into account the reality of educating 12,000 students in the Omaha district who are learning English and 500 who are homeless, he said.
A policy that counts only graduation from high school in four years as an educational success is a disservice to students and teachers who are working hard and achieving success in a different time frame, Mackiel said.
"Our young people deserve better, as do our teachers," he said.
The federal law is abritrary and inflexible and demoralizing for teachers who just want to teach kids and help them succeed, several participants said.
"I believe in standards at the state and local level with accountability built into that approach," Johanns said.
The four-year graduation model should not be the only measure of success, he said.
A better way to judge success is to measure progress, Johanns said.
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