Spring Break
CEA joins No Child Left Behind opposition
Regina Forker
Issue date: 4/26/05 Section: News
The Connecticut Education Association (CEA) joined the National Education Association (NEA) and various school districts across the country to bring a lawsuit against President Bush's No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) on April 20.
According to CNN.com, the other plaintiffs in the case are nine school districts in Michigan, Texas and Vermont, plus 10 NEA chapters in those three states as well as Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Utah.
According to the Associated Press, a recent analysis by Connecticut education officials found the state will have to spend $41.6 million in state money for staff, program and development costs to meet the law's mandates through 2008. Hundreds of millions more in costs are expected to be picked up by local districts.
The tenets of the law state the costs related to new programs required by the act will be provided to the states by the federal government.
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal began publicizing his plans to pursue a lawsuit against the act earlier this month and still plans to file another suit against the act in addition to the one just filed.
A press release from the CEA said Blumenthal's suit will focus primarily on the testing aspect of the act, while the suit already filed will focus on broader issues, specifically the fact "that Washington should pay for implementing all its NCLB regulations."
Though the lawsuit is already spewing controversy throughout the country, it has some followers here at UConn.
Richard Schwab, dean of the Neag School of Education, said the NCLB Act has had the biggest impact on teachers in the classroom.
"There is a big emphasis on testing and assessment and that's affecting how students are looking at the profession," he said.
Since the Connecticut lawsuit has yet to be filed, Schwab said he hopes the two parties can work out their differences before it comes to that.
According to CNN.com, the other plaintiffs in the case are nine school districts in Michigan, Texas and Vermont, plus 10 NEA chapters in those three states as well as Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Utah.
According to the Associated Press, a recent analysis by Connecticut education officials found the state will have to spend $41.6 million in state money for staff, program and development costs to meet the law's mandates through 2008. Hundreds of millions more in costs are expected to be picked up by local districts.
The tenets of the law state the costs related to new programs required by the act will be provided to the states by the federal government.
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal began publicizing his plans to pursue a lawsuit against the act earlier this month and still plans to file another suit against the act in addition to the one just filed.
A press release from the CEA said Blumenthal's suit will focus primarily on the testing aspect of the act, while the suit already filed will focus on broader issues, specifically the fact "that Washington should pay for implementing all its NCLB regulations."
Though the lawsuit is already spewing controversy throughout the country, it has some followers here at UConn.
Richard Schwab, dean of the Neag School of Education, said the NCLB Act has had the biggest impact on teachers in the classroom.
"There is a big emphasis on testing and assessment and that's affecting how students are looking at the profession," he said.
Since the Connecticut lawsuit has yet to be filed, Schwab said he hopes the two parties can work out their differences before it comes to that.