I abhor what Berkley is doing here but no one is talking about the impact of NCLB on race and advanced programs.
By 2014, all schools MUST have 100% proficiency in all racial groups or there will be financial consequences (providing free tutors, allowing students to go to another school in the district, or free after school programs). Now the states are dumbing down their tests, setting proficiency a grade or two lower than the students tested, in an attempt to make this more achievable. Still, they won’t make 100% because there are those students who don’t care about the test or have skills several grade levels below.
While the racial tension has always played a part in how schools (especially in liberal, college towns) fund various programs, it has gotten worse since NCLB.
Shredding the AP program isn’t the solution. Modifying NCLB is.
