Search

The article focuses on the disadvantages of evaluating students based on their achievement in end of the year examinations. It explains that examinations do not accurately reflect improvement or learning processes. The need for improved methods of accountability in schools is explored and the achievement gap between white and minority students is discussed. The effects of the U.S. No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) on educational accountability and assessment are examined and suggestions on how to improve educational evaluation techniques are presented.

This article examines how English language learners (ELLs) are handled by the U.S. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. Limited English proficient (LEP) students are included in their schools' calculations of adequate yearly progress (AYP) and must show improvement on tests or their school will be labeled as failing. It is noted that while NCLB acknowledges that LEPs lack the language abilities to take tests as native English speakers, they are nonetheless required to take the exams and the body of students making up the LEP subgroup is shifting, making it difficult to show improvement over time. The option of testing students in their native language is considered as a solution but states do not administer them because of impracticality.

The article presents answers to questions on topics related to education in the U.S., including changing a school's grading policies and increasing parent-teacher meetings, the validity of teacher-made tests and textbook assessments as means of evaluating student learning in the primary-school years, and the reliability of measuring learning through multiple-choice tests only.