The No Child Left Behind Act ensures that all children in the U.S get a free education. However, several individuals claimed the children in some regions were not being treated equally or were not receiving equal chances due to the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). President Barack Obama signed the NCLB Act on December 10, 2015, mainly due to this primary motivation (McGuinn, 2016). The ESSA is currently the state’s most comprehensive system of education legislation, requiring that schools hold themselves responsible for how children study and accomplish. It also aspires to guarantee an unbiased opportunity for students who need special education. The Primary and Secondary Education Act (ESSA), aiming to enhance education in basic and secondary schools, was overwhelmingly supported by both houses of Congress, with solid bi-partisan sustenance.
In addition, states have a stake in how education plans for their schools get executed within a specific time frame set by the federal government. The ESSA is particularly vital for our educational system since it nurtures accountability by ensuring that when kids fall behind in their studies, those students will have resources to assist them in catching up (Heise, 2017). ESSA was initially adopted in 1965. President Obama signed the ESSA to replace No Child Left Behind. President Obama amended the law to hold states accountable for failing schools. This law also stated that all students might succeed regardless of race, ethnicity, disability, English proficiency, or poverty. These low-performing schools will also be helped to meet the costs of providing high-quality education. This Act will also provide tools and resources to ensure all children get a decent education. Every kid should have the chance to succeed because the world of tomorrow needs people who are capable of great things. Whether or not a person is successful should not be based on race, history, or financial circumstances. All students should pursue their dreams, regardless of their socioeconomic status.
Historical and Constitutional Background
What is the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), and how does it work? ESSA of 2015 is a modification of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, which succeeded the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002. Education and education regulations have evolved throughout the years, and they are still being revised to offer all students the essential tools for a successful education. The Every Student Succeeds Act 3 Elementary, and Secondary Education Act(ESEA) was ratified in 1965 as part of President B. Johnson’s “War on Poverty” program, which his administration launched. The ESEA provided additional subsidies to districts to benefit low-status kids; most of these federal monies got used to buying textbooks and library books and financing for special needs education and scholarships centres for students from poor backgrounds. President George Bush renamed the NCLB Act a few years later, in 2001, after the president of the U.S. The NCBA, on the other hand, had a dilemma since studies found that 47 per cent, almost half, of the United States high school graduates, could not finish either a career-ready course, examination, or college as required by law (Team, 2018).
To address this issue, President Barack Obama signed into law the Every Student Succeeded Act in 2015. The Act intended to alleviate public dissatisfaction with the NCLB enactment over-dependence on homogenous testing and harsh consequences by reducing standardized testing and sanctions. State education departments may also monitor how schools use their money to achieve educational objectives. They can be developing educational plans for their schools within an outline supplied by the state government (Nelson, 2016). As the passage and application of this legislation, high-school dropout rates have reduced dramatically, as advancement rates have remained high and stable.
Checks and Balances
To make the necessary change from the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) to the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), significant modifications were required for the improvements to impact and benefit schools. You may want to know whether there will be any district restrictions or requirements, for example. Schools have been operating on their accountability systems for the previous several years. Having checks and balances in place, everyone will understand and follow the same regulations. In 2016, the National Education Association published The New Era of Education Accountability (Guo-Brennan,2020). As a result, states began transitioning from the old, “one-size-fits-all” method prescribed by the previous legislation and toward a new, “build-it-yourself” one which enables the respective state to choose how best to assess its systems of education. In 2016, the National Education Association published The New Era of Education Accountability.
All social groups, including religious institutions, enterprises, and corporations, need checks and balances to function correctly. In the context of governance, the checks and also balances related to acts aimed to restrict the authority of a single person or body of government while also ensuring a “balanced alliance” of the people with all government institutions and organizations. As a result of the repeal of the one-size-fits-all legislation known as No Child Left Behind, each state is now free to develop its methodology for gauging the effectiveness of its educational systems. The national agencies had plenty of information, but we did not do an excellent job of getting it out to the public in a way that parents and teachers could connect. This was mostly an effort in being more open, is how I would describe the No Child Left Behind period in the United States. I believe that ESSA promises to move beyond openness and into the concept that it is not enough to notify a school that they are not doing enough for children, but that we must assist that school in improving. In 2016, the executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers, Chris Minnich, indicated that in the New Era of Education Accountability, education accountability had become more critical than ever (Close, Amrein-Beardsley and Collins, 2018).
Public Policy, Elections, and Media
Every student has benefited from the ESSA by receiving the learning experience they are entitled. Following the statewide vote, this policy will be implemented, and the societies around these schools will continue to push to improve their students’ educational experience. According to Heise (2017), more problems arise in the educational system when scholars have no proper access to the appropriate learning atmosphere and tools to succeed. Additionally, ESSA has enabled an increase in special education programs due to increased funding, letting children living with disabilities get personalized attention in their respective classrooms and obtain the suitable contact and help they need to flourish as a scholar (Cook-Harvey et al.,2016). The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) removed the requirement that students having severe disabilities take homogenous tests irrespective of their IEPs. For years, teachers believed they were required to provide the necessary resources for their special education classes despite their lack of such resources. This strategy also places testing on the back burner, removes the “failing” tag from schools and regions, and provides instructors with incredible alternative options depending on the school and children’s needs, among other things. The Act has altered the viewpoint for school assessment results throughout the state. The rate of dropout has reduced, and the institute board has made it the obligation of the guardians or parents to provide transportation for the children missing for a given schooldays.
On the contrary, the parents and the public are concerned about their community schools and want them to improve while fighting for greater possibilities(Cook-Harvey et al.,2016). Parents would like to see more funding allocated to school financing by the state government, enabling them to provide their kids with a better education. On the contrary, underfunding of schools was the most severe subject in each region, and the press did not dedicate enough time to covering ESSA Act in its entirety. Most parents would reach out to the media, hoping to see a shift and receive greater attention on this topic.
Voting and the Election Process
Every Student Succeeds Act was not in effect until Congress enacted it. As a result, they were forced to vote to abolish and alter essential rules. Congress voted on whether ESSA or the NCLB will aid more struggling schools. Following passage by Congress, the legislation was forwarded to the House of Representatives for consideration and a vote. One of President Obama’s last legislative accomplishments, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), was repealed by Congress. With the help of the Congressional Review Act, the House of Representatives invalidated federal restrictions. (Laird, 2018)States were compelled by Obama’s rules to place a greater emphasis on test scores and graduation rates than any other metric when determining whether a school is functioning below standard. School districts had to offer guardians/parents and the general public a complete yearly student performance card on school-wide student performance statistics and other indications of success that were simpler to comprehend under new standards. Congress has overturned President Obama’s education policies. Democrats and Republicans agreed that the state government should expose local schools to strict performance standards and regularly evaluate them to ensure that achievement inequalities between various children’s groups were reduced. Examples include pupils who come from low-income homes and those who are immigrants.
Conclusion
Education is one of the most crucial parts of leading a fulfilling life and achieving professional success. Every student should be given a chance to brighten their prospects. However, every policy or Act necessitates the establishment of checks and balances, which restores the balance of power. Congress and the House of Representatives have developed and passed the voting and electoral votes that decide the result of a rule or policy into law. ESSA mandates that states set their own goals, long-term or short-term, to quantify those goals. To establish these objectives and expectations, schools must develop an evidence-based strategy to assist the specific group of kids falling behind in their studies. It is the district’s responsibility to keep track of these plans. If the school’s performance continues to lag, the community will intervene and take whatever steps are essential to improve schools and reduce achievement disparities.
References
Close, K., Amrein-Beardsley, A., & Collins, C. (2018). State-Level Assessments and Teacher Evaluation Systems after the Passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act: Some Steps in the Right Direction. National Education Policy Center.
Cook-Harvey, C. M., Darling-Hammond, L., Lam, L., Mercer, C., & Roc, M. (2016). Equity and ESSA: Leveraging Educational Opportunity through the Every Student Succeeds Act. Learning Policy Institute.
Guo-Brennan, M. (2020). The Rise of School Choice: Leaving No Child Behind So Every Student Succeeds. In Community Engagement for Better Schools (pp. 115-137). Springer, Cham.
Heise, M. (2017). From no child left behind to every student succeeds: Back to a future for education federalism. Colum. L. Rev., 117, 1859.
Laird, S. (2018). School lunch matters: Encountering the new Jim Crow and the Anthropocene: American Educational Studies Association, Pittsburgh, PA, November 4, 2017. Educational Studies, 54(1), 17-33.
McGuinn, P. (2016). From no child left behind to the, every student succeeds Act: Federalism and the education legacy of the Obama administration. Publius: The Journal of Federalism, 46(3), 392-415.
Nelson, A. R. (2016). The Elementary and Secondary Education Act at fifty: A changing federal role in American education. History of Education Quarterly, 56(2), 358-361.
Team, U. (2018). The difference between the Every Student Succeeds Act and No Child Left Behind.
write