Big Think

Daniel Warwick on January 16, 2008, 4:20 PM

I entirely disagree. The NCLB act has done me no good. I could have been learning about things that matter—the constitution, the Israeli-Palistinean Conflict, the Vietnam War—rather than have my teachers teach to the test. You say you want to increase education, how about create gifted programs? Schoolchildren who test in will be able to enrich their own education and the country will profit. Only a small amount of people change the world, why is the government not helping mold those children into better people with more knowledge? You lost my vote, if I could vote.

Daniel Warwick on January 16, 2008, 9:20 PM

I entirely disagree. The NCLB act has done me no good. I could have been learning about things that matter—the constitution, the Israeli-Palistinean Conflict, the Vietnam War—rather than have my teachers teach to the test. You say you want to increase education, how about create gifted programs? Schoolchildren who test in will be able to enrich their own education and the country will profit. Only a small amount of people change the world, why is the government not helping mold those children into better people with more knowledge? You lost my vote, if I could vote.

Cheri Whitehead on January 21, 2008, 11:47 AM

I agree that financial support must be available to help individuals who attend college. I do not agree, however, with the implementation of NCLB. It is not possible to have all students meet standards in the same way—as a teacher of students with disabilities in one of the most impoverished cities in CA, this mode of evaluating falls short of truly assessing the knowledge and abilities of students of all kinds and does not provide the advantages that students of more affluent households have already enjoyed. I would challenge every citizen to come into the schools, especially high school classrooms, today so that they can see the amazing and exciting environments that our students are provided—I guarantee you that you will be astounded and pleased at the level of instruction in the schools that I am affiliated with. I agree that there must be standards and accountability, however, it must result in positive outcomes, not just statistics that are not attainable—NCLB is not the answer!

Cheri Whitehead on January 21, 2008, 4:47 PM

I agree that financial support must be available to help individuals who attend college. I do not agree, however, with the implementation of NCLB. It is not possible to have all students meet standards in the same way—as a teacher of students with disabilities in one of the most impoverished cities in CA, this mode of evaluating falls short of truly assessing the knowledge and abilities of students of all kinds and does not provide the advantages that students of more affluent households have already enjoyed. I would challenge every citizen to come into the schools, especially high school classrooms, today so that they can see the amazing and exciting environments that our students are provided—I guarantee you that you will be astounded and pleased at the level of instruction in the schools that I am affiliated with. I agree that there must be standards and accountability, however, it must result in positive outcomes, not just statistics that are not attainable—NCLB is not the answer!

James Moore on March 9, 2008, 12:37 PM

Public schools CANNOT become TOO focused on standardized tests and their scores, which is what has happened with NCLB. Teaching students EXACTLY whats on the test becomes so important to the administrators and the district that it excludes other dire needs within schools, the most important being a reasonable learning environment for students, a curriculum that challenges students in real-world situations, and professional development to create more effective teachers.

James Moore on March 9, 2008, 4:37 PM

Public schools CANNOT become TOO focused on standardized tests and their scores, which is what has happened with NCLB. Teaching students EXACTLY whats on the test becomes so important to the administrators and the district that it excludes other dire needs within schools, the most important being a reasonable learning environment for students, a curriculum that challenges students in real-world situations, and professional development to create more effective teachers.

Jacoline Loewen on March 15, 2008, 1:01 PM

Math, science and engineering are the backbones to a strong society but the hardest subjects to master. Great to hear an American politician saying these subjects matter. Perhaps graduates from these programs should be given a tax exemption on their first home downpayment as a reward for their dedication. What gets rewarded, gets done.

Jacoline Loewen on March 15, 2008, 5:01 PM

Math, science and engineering are the backbones to a strong society but the hardest subjects to master. Great to hear an American politician saying these subjects matter. Perhaps graduates from these programs should be given a tax exemption on their first home downpayment as a reward for their dedication. What gets rewarded, gets done.

Sue Hammond on April 29, 2008, 6:54 AM

Ah yes, Sen. McCain, you want to "incentivize math, science and engineering students". And how, precisely, would you do that? By "doing everything you can to make sure they receive an education in those specialties." Does doing everything include paying for that education, or only making it "affordable"? And then what? So you've educated them, are you going to guarantee them jobs or continue to force them to compete with increasing numbers of H1b2 (don't know if these are the right letters, but I think you know what this refers to) visa holders who are equally well trained and work for considerably less? And even if they land a good job here how will you deal with the fact that in this computer age many of these jobs are ones that can too easily be outsourced in the blink of an eye over our wonderful WWW.?

So Sen., what precisely is your incentive? Maybe you should think about this a little more and come back when you have more than simple bromides to offer.

Sue Hammond on April 29, 2008, 10:54 AM

Ah yes, Sen. McCain, you want to “incentivize math, science and engineering students”. And how, precisely, would you do that? By “doing everything you can to make sure they receive an education in those specialties.” Does doing everything include paying for that education, or only making it “affordable”? And then what? So you’ve educated them, are you going to guarantee them jobs or continue to force them to compete with increasing numbers of H1b2 (don’t know if these are the right letters, but I think you know what this refers to) visa holders who are equally well trained and work for considerably less? And even if they land a good job here how will you deal with the fact that in this computer age many of these jobs are ones that can too easily be outsourced in the blink of an eye over our wonderful WWW.?

So Sen., what precisely is your incentive? Maybe you should think about this a little more and come back when you have more than simple bromides to offer.

William Sellers on July 15, 2008, 3:30 PM

It seems a bit confusing here. Are the poll/rating buttons provided to ask if I agree with the opinions expressed by Senator McCain? Or if I think he would actually DO these things? Or if I think he answered the question?

William Sellers on July 15, 2008, 7:30 PM

It seems a bit confusing here. Are the poll/rating buttons provided to ask if I agree with the opinions expressed by Senator McCain? Or if I think he would actually DO these things? Or if I think he answered the question?