One issue that caught my attention also involves what we have been talking about this week. In the newsletter that I read, there was a headline that stated, Congress Leaves Student Accountability Behind. The issue at hand is that legislators are not taken into account the accountability that they must have when it comes to our children’s education. The CDF wrote a letter addressed to two senators who are part of the Committee on Health Education Labor and Pensions. The first sentence read:
On behalf of the millions of students with disabilities, low-income students, students of color and English-language learners studying in our nation’s schools, we would like to offer our initial comments on your Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) reauthorization proposal. (Edelman, Haycock, Henderson, Murgia, Podesta, & Wendorf, 2011)
Six people came together to write this article and wrote out their proposals and what they thought was wrong. They mentioned how states were setting their standards too low and taking advantage of the system. The letter mentions setting long-term state wide goals and demanding that the gap be closed for higher learning achievement.
The CDF wants the best for every child and devotes all their efforts to make sure that every child is getting the same education. They want funding for all day kindergarten so that children do not miss important foundational steps. The CDF works on lowering dropout rates in hopes of seeing more children graduate from high school.
References:
Edelman, M., Haycock, K., Henderson, W., Murgia, J., Podesta, J., & Wendorf, J. (October 11, 2011). The reauthorization of the elementary and secondary education act. Retrieved from http://www.edtrust.org/sites/edtrust.org/files/Harkin-Enzi-ESEA-goals-letter.pdf
We both picked the same website, so I look forward to reading your blog posts. There is so much information on the site. The children's defense fund does so much work and advocates for so many of the children's rights. I agree with one of their goals to have funding for all day kindergarten. In my area, some schools are still not all day kindergarten and the ones that are, I hear a lot of talk about budget cuts and all day would have to go.
ReplyDeleteCharlotte –
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing organization. It wonderful that a there are resources that hold not just local government, education systems and parents accountable but, instead is willing to take on the federal government. After all I believe the federal legislation needs to be held more accountable instead of simply changing policies to make themselves look and/or feel better.
I look forward to reading your blog in the future. Thank you for sharing.
Schlee ☺