Ķvlog

Curriculum

Reading Teachers See Few Changes Under NCLB Law

By Kathleen Kennedy Manzo — February 15, 2005 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

While most reading professionals agree with the basic tenets of the federal No Child Left Behind Act—that reading instruction should be based on research and teachers should engage in sound professional development in the subject—fewer than half in a recent survey indicated that instruction has improved as a result of the 3-year-old law.

The Ķvlog overwhelmingly agreed that reading instruction has received more attention because of the law’s focus on literacy, but nearly 80 percent said the measure has contributed to low teacher morale.

Read the results of the International Reading Association .

The Newark, Del.-based International Reading Association surveyed some 4,000 of its 80,000 members last fall to gauge their perceptions of the benefits, and drawbacks, of the federal law.

A third of those randomly polled responded to the survey. Overall, the respondents were generally positive about the aims of the law, but they disagreed with the penalties imposed on schools that consistently do not meet performance goals.

Views on whether the law’s benefits outweigh its weaknesses were mixed, with 41 percent agreeing with that statement, and 37 percent disagreeing.

Teachers working at schools receiving money under the federal Reading First initiative expressed more positive opinions about the NCLB law than did their peers at nonparticipating schools.

A version of this article appeared in the February 16, 2005 edition of Education Week

Events

College & Workforce Readiness Webinar How High Schools Can Prepare Students for College and Career
Explore how schools are reimagining high school with hands-on learning that prepares students for both college and career success.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School Climate & Safety Webinar
GoGuardian and Google: Proactive AI Safety in Schools
Learn how to safely adopt innovative AI tools while maintaining support for student well-being. 
Content provided by 
Reading & Literacy K-12 Essentials Forum Supporting Struggling Readers in Middle and High School
Join this free virtual event to learn more about policy, data, research, and experiences around supporting older students who struggle to read.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

Curriculum Why Most Teachers Mix and Match Curricula—Even When They Have a 'High-Quality' Option
Teachers who supplement "may be signaling about inadequacies in the materials that are provided to them,” write the authors of a new report.
6 min read
An elementary school teacher helps a student with a writing activity.
An elementary school teacher helps a student with a writing activity.
Allison Shelley for All4Ed
Curriculum How Digital Games Can Help Young Kids Separate Fact From Fiction
Even elementary students need to learn how to spot misinformation.
3 min read
Aerial view of an diverse elementary school classroom using digital  devices with a digitized design of lines connecting each device to symbolize AI and connectivity of data and Information.
iStock/Getty
Curriculum Opinion How Much Autonomy Should Teachers Have Over Instructional Materials?
Some policymakers are pushing schools to adopt high-quality scripted lessons for teachers. And here's why.
8 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
Curriculum Middle Schools Often Prioritize English and Math Over Other Subjects. Should They?
An Illinois district is equalizing time across the four major content areas. But the decision comes with trade-offs.
5 min read
Illustration of clock with math and science symbols.
Chris Whetzel for Education Week<br/>