'No Child Left Behind' Made Me a Better Teacher

I know there are plenty of "No Child Left Behind" haters out there. I’m not a huge fan myself. I am a teacher, and I believe that my students are measured by more then a test score.

But I am also a realist, and instead of rejoicing in the dismantling of the law, we should all pause and not throw out the baby with the bath water.
Here are four ways that "No Child Left Behind" made me a better teacher:

1. Data, Data, Data: I know we’re now almost overwhelmed by the amount of data we receive on our students' strengths and weaknesses. Prior to "No Child Left Behind," it was up to me to assess my students on each standard they were required to master. But after the first year or so, I started getting good data on my students. I was able to determine what I needed to teach better and what I was teaching well. I was also able to look at each student and see who had mastered what, who needed re-teaching and who was ready to move on.  It made me better because I was able to provide better, focused instruction.

In the district I taught, my students were measured by benchmarks in math and reading on at least a quarterly basis; if they were ready for mastery they could take the test at any time. I received detailed reports on each student’s performance. I could then individualize my instruction based on the students' needs. Better data = better instruction = student mastery.

2. Focused Instruction: This may seem repetitive, but it’s not. When I completed my teacher education program, I could write a six-step lesson plan with the best of them. I enjoyed it. But the "No Child Left Behind Law" changed the way I learned to write lesson plans. Instead of an objective such as “Students will understand the Westward Movement” (I never had this as an objective), I learned to create both Content Objectives and Language Objectives.

This is part of the SIOP model, developed for English Language Learners but extremely effective for all students. In this lesson plan I have a content objective that would say “Students will identify four achievements of the Egyptians. Students will write about ONE of the achievements and share with classmates.” My language objective would be “Students will read aloud (in pairs) the writing they did about one of the Egyptian achievements.”

I have now established a specific goal of the lesson, a method by which the objective will be met and I have developed content and language knowledge. I was trained in the method because of the funding provided to my school through a grant, made possible because of "No Child Left Behind."

3. Teacher Instruction: It should be pretty obvious that it is impossible for teachers to sit in on one-day training, gather all the information and overnight begin teaching the new strategy, new program or method. But for years this has been how schools have worked, until "No Child Left Behind." (Maybe some schools still work like this, but in the places I’ve been, this has changed.)

One step forward has been the understanding of how teachers learn, and in turn, introduce concepts and methods to students. Schools no longer adopt multiple major projects to master over the course of a year. Schools can now focus on one or two changes and provide deep instruction to faculty, with continual follow-up.

Secondly, the introduction of teacher coaches has helped teachers to have support (without analysis) in implementing new strategies and programs -- all made possible by "No Child Left Behind."

4. Response To Intervention: Never heard of it? Response to Intervention is a tiered response for struggling students. I worked at a pilot school in Casper, Wyoming. The program is a way to provide students differing levels of intervention, measuring their response and deciding on the next level of intervention.

It’s designed to provide students with appropriate support without immediate referral to special education services. It also means that a team is in place to evaluate students' progress, needs and evaluation. (No one person is making decisions for a student.) The team usually consists of an administrator, the teacher, Response to Intervention team, school psychologist, nurse and/or the teacher coach. It stemmed from the requirements "No Child Left Behind" placed on schools, and it works.

I don’t think the law is perfect. I don’t think that the practice of penalizing schools is acceptable. And I know how hard teachers work. But I’m also willing to accept that along with the bad, some good came out of the law. In the end, I’ve learned a great deal about teaching and became a better teacher, and my students benefit. That is, after all, the goal?