NCLB Waived by Obama

Today in Washington, a sudden decision was made by the President to grant waivers to 10 states to suspend the No Child Left Behind Law, passed under the Bush Administration.


This decision absolutely reeks of politics. Let me make myself clear that from the perspective of an educator, I am no fan of NCLB, as it is a flawed law and does not readily take into account local issues, especially in a state like New Jersey, where local school districts are more common. That being said, the President's process has to be questioned. Taking these steps both preempts the legislative process and as a result, imposes the President's agenda on public schools without the approval of Congress. This is very troubling for a president and party who accused the last president of increasing the scope of the Executive Branch. Furthermore, if one looks at the states chosen, this action is quite transparent as he's attempting to rev up teachers in an election year and wants to let the local NEA and UFT chapters know their man is backing their concerns, as teachers universally hate the law. At least half the states are major swing states in this election and others, such as New Jersey, have key elections coming up in the next year that can either be a benefit or thorn in the side to the President, if he wins re-election.

Clearly, the move to axe NCLB is a blatantly transparent political move in an election cycle and another example of endorsing a double-standard in leading, as long as it fits the president's agenda.