News Release

New NIEA Report Shows NCLB's One-Size-Fits-All
Approach Leaves Behind Native American Students

Report cites NCLB as a barrier to learning faced
by American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian students

WASHINGTON -- Reg Weaver, president of the National Education Association (NEA), concurred with the findings of a report  released today by the National Indian Education Association (NIEA) at its annual conference in Denver, CO.

NIEA's "Preliminary Report on No Child Left Behind," which was commissioned in connection with the Center for Indian Education at Arizona State University, provides insight on the impact that the law has had on American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian students and the educational institutions they attend.

"The NIEA report is just another example of how the so-called No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law doesn't help students," said Weaver. "As we feared, the law's unintended negative consequences have led to the diminishment of Native languages and cultures. As a result, our nation's Native American children are being left behind."

The report found a variety of barriers to learning faced by American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian students. Among those barriers are stereotyping students and budget shortfalls.

"Labels don't help children learn," added Weaver. "The report documents that American Indian children are internalizing the system's failures as their own personal failures."

The report also disclosed alarm about the lack of resources provided by the federal government to help schools improve under the law's unfunded mandates. In the four years since NCLB was enacted, the shortfall between what was promised by Congress and what actually has been provided is $27 billion, and it continues to grow.

"From the beginning, we have been saying this law needs to be fixed and funded," said Weaver. "The law has imposed many major requirements on states and school districts, but federal funding to pay for these requirements has not matched the mandates."

Already this school year, two-thirds of all districts will receive less Title I funding than they did last year. The outlook for sufficient future federal funding is even bleaker. Although Congress has not yet finished preparing the Fiscal Year 2006 education budget, both House and Senate versions would cut NCLB funding by $750 to $800 million.

NIEA is not alone in its findings, and today's report is part of a larger groundswell of opposition to the law. NEA and NIEA have joined a broad-based coalition with 58 other national groups in a joint statement calling on Congress for changes in the law .

"NEA calls on Congress and the administration to give serious consideration to the NIEA proposals as they approach ESEA reauthorization," said Weaver.

Oct. 6, 2005

For more information, contact:

Staci Maiers, NEA Public Relations (202) 822-7150

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The National Education Association is the nation's largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, college faculty, school administrators, education support professionals, retired educators and students preparing to become teachers.