Nclb_Belief_Statments

I am a teacher advocate of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) program. Thank you for taking the time to hear my thoughts and opinions on this matter. As a teacher of elementary age children I find it incredibly important to prepare students for the next level of education. I want to be able to provide students every opportunity to succeed according to state and personal standards. I believe the NCLB program is an excellent measure of a child’s success and it gives me insight on what needs a child may have. Meeting the needs of children has become a major function for me as a teacher. It is important for me to clear a pathway for learning. In order to do this, I have to make sure a child’s needs are met not only in the areas of education, but also in the areas of mental capacity, emotional development, physical development and spiritual growth. I believe it is important to maintain and develop a mentor like relationship with my students so that they come to trust and believe in the guidance and directions I give to them. As an educator I believe it is my responsibility to develop active productive members of society both locally and globally. I feel I can achieve this by not only meeting academic standards but by implementing specific life skill sets during early education that foster and promote independence, problem solving and self confidence. A teacher has to be able to do more than teach material that students will encounter in a testing format. It is important to make the information relative to the students so they find practical use for the information. I believe relativity can be fostered by: • Increasing teacher availability to students and parents – by making myself available students and parents have become more interactive and see me as a resource for learning • Identifying student needs in all areas through standardized testing – academic achievement is a requirement so using testing sets already in place helps me to determine what areas to focus on for each individual • Implementing creative approaches to presenting information – by delivering information in a non-traditional way I have found it holds the students attention and gets them involved • Getting students active in their own progress – by getting students involved they become more aware of their own achievement possibilities • Getting families active in the students’ progress – I have found when families display interest in a child’s progress the student is more likely to put forth effort • Consistently rewarding improvement – it is important for all students to feel successful • Demonstrating positive role model behavior – the manner in which I handle classroom situations becomes a guideline for student problem solving • Demonstrating problem solving skills and routines – the development of problem solving skills and routines increases critical thinking and analysis • Developing healthy competition among students – competition inspires students to do better • Developing positive outlook on the concepts of teamwork – teamwork is a necessary life skill that students must acquire academically, personally and professionally • Providing students the opportunity to display learning outside of testing – finding creative ways of testing knowledge and ability makes learning fun • Providing students the opportunity to interact socially – social develop is an important part of self confidence and personal success • Providing students the opportunity for leadership – exploring the concept of leadership helps students to identify personal growth and abilities • Allowing students to hold one another accountable – personal accountability is a large part of learning and moral character development • Exposing students to the structures of the next level – developing reasonable expectations of grades to come helps students to prepare mentally and emotionally These are beliefs that guide my actions as a teacher. I am continually seeking out ways to allow growth and fundamental development. It is important for me to be flexible in these issues and to recognize activities that develop multiple skills. Finding the right combination of activities and information has been a challenge for me. Other challenges I face are the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), standardized testing, federal funding, accountability standards, and the pressure of academic achievements from administrators. The AYP expectations and requirements press for academic achievement in order to obtain Title I, Part A funding from the federal government. Elementary schools wanting to continue funding have to meet the standards in reading, math and attendance. The challenge with the AYP is that some schools have been known to lower the standards in order for the students to excel. As an educator, I disagree with this approach. Students need to be encouraged to excel beyond their own imaginations and I feel it is a disservice to allow the testing standards to be placed lower in order to produce higher test results. The standardized test is itself a challenge. More and more teachers are “teaching to the test” meaning they are only covering material that will be on these test. This is similar to the licensing process of a lawyer, doctor, or accountant. However, this process occurs after the professional has successfully demonstrated numerous years of study. Again, this is a disservice to the growth and development of the child. By using this method of teaching the child is not realizing the potential of him or herself, nor are they grasping a thorough understanding of the application of the material. Knowing that a child has an applied understanding of the information is far beyond what most administrators seeming care to uphold. Each district and state has its own accountability standards and most are based on the standardized testing. It seems the overall goal of the districts and the states is to receive funding. I can appreciate the importance of funding and the need for more training and/or material, but I do not like the idea of sacrificing the student to get it. Lastly, the pressure for academic achievement from the administration has seemingly been the greatest challenge of them all. This is a pressure felt from within the school. This is a pressure that teachers face every day. Administrators are constantly reminding teachers of the need to excel in the specific areas of study and sometimes question the methods of a teachers approach. It could be appreciated if it was not underlined by the need for funding. In order to keep the student the main focus, administrators, educators, government, family and students need to be on the same page. This is why I think it is important to develop a learning plan for each student. By identifying the specific need of each individual student we would be able to address their individual needs while reaching the academic achievements of the government, the administrations, and my own personal beliefs. In order to be successful at implementing the NCLB program teachers have to stand firm in what they believe about teaching and educating children. By developing rapport with everyone who affects my class, I am able to keep everyone involved and gain support on many different levels. The State Board of Education can provide help in implanting the NCLB by offering specialized training to teachers in the core academic studies. By providing specialized training I believe planning for academic achievement in the core academics would be more successful. The specialization would also allow experienced teachers to Be better categorized and identified. Another thing the State Board of Education could do is provide more funding in order to retain highly experienced and qualified teachers for rural and low income areas. Implementing the NCLB has to be an organized effort in order to reach the education goals by 2014. Teachers, parents, government, administrators and most importantly the students have to contribute to the process in order to see the projected goals of the future. Thank you for your time today. References: Ginger L. McDaniel, Mariam Yvonne Isaac, Heather Michelle Brooks, and Amos Hatch. (2005). Confronting K-3 teaching challenges in an era of accountability. Young Children, (Ed.),National Association for the Education of Young Children. (Original work published March 2005). Retrieved April 12, 2010, from http://cstl-coe.semo.edu No Child Left Behind Act. Wikipedia. Retrieved April 13, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No Child Left Behind Act. No Child Left Behind Act: Additional Assistance and Research on Effective Strategies Would Help Small Rural Districts. (2004). Government Accountability Office. Retrieved April 14, 2010, from http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-04-909. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Arthur.