Letter: 'No Child' hurts disabled students

Regarding "Let's leave this law behind" [Editorial, Oct. 2], New York's possible request for a waiver from No Child Left Behind rules may not be that bad, and in the end may help.

Right now, the expectation for NCLB is that every child be reading proficiently by 2014. While that is a noble and admirable goal, it is very unrealistic because it does not allow any wiggle room for students who just won't get there in time, such as some of the students with disabilities. It makes those populations targets for blame, as the reason for failure to obtain funding or to be listed as a "school in need."

The distractions created by the aforementioned take away from the proclaimed intent of NCLB, which is, in part, to get all kids reading. Instead of focusing on reaching those students, administrators are scurrying to have faculty improve test scores, lest they be held accountable to new professional review standards, which are so fluid and hotly contested that they are impossible to define at present.

The last thing students with disabilities need is to receive an education that teaches to the test, which is a very real and unfortunate side effect of NCLB. The law should focus on making sure the state and school districts are indeed held to the task of identifying those kids who are being "left behind" (now not only in spite of, but also because of NCLB), and putting resources into capturing that population before it is lost to a curriculum that will not give these children a sound academic foundation.

Any waiver should clearly define expectations for an alternative measure of adequate yearly progress. In addition, and here is the deal-sealer, the state must follow up with monitoring of these districts, doing more than just listing their status.

If it were not for the expiration of this law, I am quite sure this population would continue to have gone on grossly underserved.

Roberta Grogan, Seaford