The New Academic Year 2007-2008
From a Superintendent in Oklahoma
By David Goin
With its emphasis upon monitoring and responding to the performance of student population subgroups, No Child Left Behind has established multiple avenues for schools to be labeled as “failing.” But the law also has prompted educators to focus more keenly upon our mission to all students. The response within our school district has been for teachers, administrators and instructional staff to collaborate in very meaningful ways to identify and implement practices that have strengthened support systems for children who are faced with significant learning challenges. At the same time, the commitment has remained strong to ensure the rigor that is needed to motivate otherwise successful students to achieve at even more advanced levels.
It is the diversity of public schools’ student populations coupled with the universality of our mission that both motivates and at times, can exasperate educators. But, the bottom line is that we cannot be satisfied to thrive with certain groups of students to the exclusion of others, for with or without No Child Left Behind our mission is to “empower all students to succeed…”#
