Timeliness

It appears that even Governor Blagojevich realizes the folly of the No Child Left Behind mandate that asks teachers to teach students to pass tests without offering the funds or wherewithal to make it a reality. I don't know if he is aware, most likely, yes, of the variance allowed for children with special needs, but according to the wording of the article, it doesn't sound like it. Of curse, the alternative testing for special needs children is only supposed to account for 2% of the student population. I don't know how the government can expect to put a quota or percentage on how many students qualify for special needs, but come on, that would be like saying that only 2% of redheads qualify for the school lunch program. How does the government put a number on such a variable? Maybe the passage of this new proposal will at least bring some attention to the absurdity of trying to mandate that which cannot be mandated without adequate funding and taking the personal differences in people's learning styles, home lives, psychological make-up and other various factors into account. Connecticut has taken the lead in looking to alter the "No Child Left Behind" laws. Governor Blagojevich has taken the approach more of a suggestion to the federal government asking for a "clean slate" until 2007 and changes for children with special needs ( which are in place, albeit limited). School is starting and there wil still be many children left behind, whether they pass the mandated tests or not.