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AEP Online |
U.S. Chamber Of Commerce Survey Indicates NCLB Reauthorization PrioritiesThe U.S. Chamber of Commerce is gearing up to have their issues addressed in the 2007 reauthorization of NCLB. They conducted a nationwide survey of businesses indicating positions they are likely to take in their attempts to affect change, titled "Insight into the Business Community's Views About the U.S. Education System." The number one concern is that the U.S. public school system have a rigorous curriculum, with 96 percent of the respondents agreeing. Over half - 53 percent - believe that the current curriculum is not preparing students for a successful transition to work or post-secondary education. This ties into concerns about the United States' ability to compete in the global marketplace, and 90 percent believe the need to raise achievement is paramount if we are to maintain our position as the leader of the world economy. How U.S. students perform against other countries has been a prominent concern over the past year, reflected in the popularity of the recent book "The World is Flat," by New York Times journalist Thomas Friedman. The Bush administration acknowledged this challenge by introducing their competitiveness initiative last year that would have dedicated more programs and funding to math, science, research and advanced placement classes. There are several issues related to secondary education that the Chamber would like to see addressed. Their primary concern is including high school in achievement measures and state standards of NCLB, according to 87 percent of respondents. Also, three quarters of those responding believe that graduating seniors should pass a "state assessment test to demonstrate college and workforce readiness." High school proficiency exams are gaining popularity and are being conducted in a few states including California. Teacher quality is a major concern, with 75 percent agreeing that "high quality instruction" is important to closing the achievement gap. Most of those responding - a strong 98 percent - agree that teachers should be able to demonstrate at least a minimum level of content knowledge. Only 26 percent believe teachers use the best available research to teach students, and only 27 percent believe that universities are properly preparing teachers for the workplace. Similar concerns have been voiced by the Federal government, which recently reported that no states had met the NCLB requirement for highly qualified teachers. In terms of solutions to this problem, the majority of those surveyed (91 percent) agree that teachers who improve achievement levels should receive better compensation. Seventy-three percent of respondents support recruiting teachers with subject content knowledge from the private sector. Providing alternative means of certification was approved of by 92 percent of those surveyed. Over half of respondents (56 percent) are ready to take on an active role in setting state standards for college and workforce readiness, and overall, nearly 75 percent believe that business should have a great degree of input into the public school system.
Questions, ideas, or in need of more information? Please contact Stacey Pusey at 856-241-7772. |
You can view the results of their survey at www.uschamber.com.
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2008 The Association of Educational
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