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Regardless ot now one teeis about NCLB, there are some myths surrounding it that need to be addressed for informed decisions. Mitchell, Fauquier County Public Schools associate superintendent for instruction, dispelled some of the myths surrounding the NCLB.
There are no national standardized tests of children required by federal law; there are only state tests based on state standards. Such scores are not the only benchmark measurements; others include such things as graduation and attendance rates.
Another myth surrounding NCLB is that children will use only rote thinking skills as they meet the federal requirements. However, analytical reasoning and complex thinking skills are required in Virginia's state standards for its students.
But there are aspects of NCLB that Mitchell and some of her colleagues find discouraging.
There are 29 benchmarks that a school must make in order to achieve the status of adequate yearly progress (AYP), a measurement used to determine if a school is successfully educating their students. If the school misses just one benchmark out of 29, even by a single point, it does not make AYP.
Rappahannock County High School made AYP for the 2006-2007 school year, but Rappahannock County Elementary School did not. Both the high school and the elementary school made AYP for the 2007-2008 school year. Complete results will be presented at the next regular Rappahannock County School Board meeting on September 11.
In Fauquier County this past year, nine schools made AYP: Bradley Elementary,
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