Paper Topic:

The No Child Left Behind Act and how it affects special education

No Child Left Behind Act and how it Affects Special Education

April 2007

The United States educational system has been undergoing several structural and policy changes in the last few years . The federal government has begun to play a greater role in education as is reflected in the principles laid down in the No Child Left Behind (NCLB ) act Though individual states remain largely responsible for the education of the individuals within their constituency , the government has been quite evidently support educational processes . The government grants to each state 10 funding

on the costs of educating within each state . While this amount is not as significant the 90 that the states have to provide , it does reveal that the federal government is at least paying some amount of interest in the education of students

Moreover the NCLB act is another formidable demonstration of the particular interest that the federal government places on education . The principle of the NCLB is that each child registered within the school system must be given all opportunities to develop and to achieve . To ensure the success of every child and to guarantee that no child is left behind , the act holds educators directly accountable for ensuring that each child aims for and achieves the prescribed standards . Overall this effort should translate into an overall statewide improvement in the academic achievement of students

These broad reaching goals are of relevance to all involved in the education of children . Parents , teachers in general education classrooms , teachers in special education classrooms , students (regardless of demographics , aptitude or disability ) are all required to be involved in the development of each child . This fact poses considerable questions and raises significant concerns for the special education classroom . These schools are required to aspire to the same broad reaching goals and objectives as general education schools . It is evident that the act , though it may present several benefits for special education , will also have its limitations . Educators are , however , still required to aim for the target of leaving no child behind

The NCLB act is of some benefit for special education and therefore presents positive opportunities for children with special education needs . The primary benefit of the act to special needs education is that it there is now greater attention paid to special education learners (Lewis , 2007 . McMahon (2005 ) see the specific focus of the act on the particular needs of students with disabilities as a liberating move for this group . He commends the acts focus on groups that were traditionally underrepresented or ignored in the education system and for whom little effective policies existed . The students included in this group are minority groups , non-English speaking emigrants and students with disabilities

Commendably , educators are beginning to think of students with disabilities as capable of performing academically and even being on par with their peers . With the passage of the NCLB act teachers are required not only to include students with disabilities in their report on the performance of students school-wide , they are...

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