Treat yourself to two fascinating features in the Chicago Tribune about a young girl who takes advantage of the NCLB transfer option to move to a new school on the North Side. Rayola has every disadvantage stacked against her: she failed third grade already, spends hours commuting across town to school, and is often absent because no one is available to get her there or her mother lets her stay up late or fails to wake her up in the morning. Still, with intensive attention, tutoring, and pluck, she does well and begins to make real academic strides. Unfortunately, her impulsive mother pulls her out of the school and sends her to a new one-her fifth in five years-that has many of the same problems as the school she originally transferred from. These two articles are both heartbreaking and heartwarming, though the reporter doesn't seem inclined to make any judgments beyond "What a mess this whole business is." We're inclined to take a more positive view. While we readily acknowledge the shortcomings of NCLB's transfer provision, the stories put a face on something we already have some evidence about-that the transfer provision can have the desired effect (see Gadfly, Volume 4, Number 17). And yes, social obstacles, lifestyle choices and family circumstances make implementing education reforms difficult. But while there are Rayolas out there-students who can do more, if more is expected of them-it remains a moral imperative to try
"One girl's struggle to find a future," by Stephanie Banchero, Chicago Tribune, July 18, 2004 (registration required)
"Starting over," by Stephanie Banchero, Chicago Tribune, July 20, 2004 (registration required)