Received this e-mail today from Senator Mark Begich (D. AK):
When you drop the kids off on the first day of school next week, you won’t send them there empty-handed. You’ll make sure they have the notebooks they need, a new backpack, one of those nifty pencil cases to hold all their stuff, and anything else they will need to be prepared to learn.
I know how it goes because I’m a father. I also know that every kid is unique. Unfortunately, because of No Child Left Behind, America’s public school system is really becoming a one-size-fits-all proposition, with no long-term solution for unique school districts like those in Alaska.
It’s time Congress got serious about education reform. We need to ditch the NCLB one-size-fits-all approach and overhaul our federal education system. If you are with me on this, please consider adding your name to our open letter today:
http://www.markbegich.com/...
Individual school districts, communities, parents, and teachers know what is best for our children. And in the off chance that the needs of East Anchorage High School and Barrow High School are different than the needs of Stuyvesant High School in New York City, federal law should leave room for local schools to make their own decisions.
NCLB doesn’t do that. And the waivers that are meant to remedy the federal mandate for states with specific needs are not a long-term solution, they’re really just a short-term fix.
Education decisions for Alaska’s students should not be made by bureaucrats in Washington. It’s not fair to students. It’s not fair to education professionals. And it needs to be fixed.
Tell Congress: Ditch the federal education mandates. Ditch NCLB. And overhaul the public school system. Sign the open letter to Congress today:
http://www.markbegich.com/...
Every kid deserves a quality public education -- not only for their own success, but the success of our economy.
Thank you for your support.
Mark
You can click here to sign Begich's letter:
http://www.markbegich.com/...