Film raises questions on No Child Left Behind

New York City student teacher turned filmmaker Lerone Wilson delves into the controversial No… New York City student teacher turned filmmaker Lerone Wilson delves into the controversial No Child Left Behind Act and its impact on America’s educational system in his 2005 documentary of the same name.

The Pitt Public Service Program and Student Volunteer Outreach sponsored a screening of Wilson’s documentary, “No Child Left Behind,” last Wednesday in David Lawrence Hall.

Eric Hartman – an instructor in the Public Service Program who helped organize the event – described the presentation as “an opportunity to see a documentary that I hope presents both sides of a debate on No Child Left Behind.”

Some students at the screening said the film didn’t pull them strongly to either side of the debate.

“It made me more confused,” senior Ashley McAdams said. “I had a negative opinion of the act, but now I’m a little more informed.”

Natalie Campbell, a Student Volunteer Outreach tutor, said, “I don’t feel the issue is any more resolved for me after watching the documentary, but maybe that will foster some more research.”

In sponsoring the screening, Pitt Public Service Program and Student Volunteer Outreach also hoped to illustrate the importance of one-on-one teaching to a child’s development and encouraged students to get involved in the tutoring programs.

Reflecting on her own experience tutoring Somalian refugees, Campbell said, “It’s really important to me that these children have a fair chance at education here in Pittsburgh. When it comes to being an [English as a Second Language] student dealing with emotional issues and discrimination, I think it’s important for Pittsburgh students to be the glue between school and community for these kids.”

In the documentary, a gap between affluent students and their poorer counterparts takes center stage in the criticism of No Child Left Behind, particularly its “one-size-fits-all” approach to enforcing educational standards through testing.

Critics of the act insist that it sets the bar high, but fails to provide schools with adequate funding to bridge the innate gap between richer and poorer children.

“My aunt is a teacher in a pretty bad area of Harrisburg, and [No Child Left Behind] pushes children onto the next grade even though she wants to hold them back, so it’s kind of like they’ll be left behind anyway,” junior Lauren Stoner said.

Of the experts interviewed in the documentary, both pro and con often expressed the same sentiment regarding No Child Left Behind: good intent, bad implementation.

Sophomore Sarah Rentz had a similar opinion.

“It’s easy to say it’s a bad program, but they had to do something because the U.S. is so below other countries in education,” Rentz said, “But when it’s all about testing, teachers miss out on other important things to focus on.”