Abstract

No Politician Left Behind

The author argues that the Bush administration's No Child Left Behind initiative appears to help poor children, but fails to do so in practice. So along comes No Child Left Behind, and from right to left, everyone climbs aboard. It was, after all, an extension of a policy idea hatched under Bush Senior, pursued under Clinton and replicated in many states--the premise of which is that frequent testing will solve educational problems. And in fact the focus on "results," not "opportunities," echoes older liberal, not conservative, themes. Yet had anyone read the bill with care, it would have been hard not to fault it on almost every ground, except perhaps the high aspirations embedded in the title. Yet virtually no high-powered public figures, nor any important leaders of either party (including John Kerry), have done more than demur from this or that aspect of this preposterous bill. Meanwhile, those closest to the action (teachers, principals and superintendents organizations, as well as local school boards) are in almost unanimous opposition--but quietly, as they are fearful of being seen as whiners, a defensive coalition of self-interests. Yes, the defeat of Bush is a necessity for the future of public education, but it won't rest easy in the hands of a Kerry administration either. Oddly enough, what matters more, for strictly schooling "outcomes," is not what happens inside our schools but inside our society. On those questions there is little doubt which candidate will be better for our kids.