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Put to the Test Part 3 (of 6)

From: WUNC
Series: Put to the Test (Six Part Documentary News Series)
Length: 07:37

Series on the impact of NCLB and high stakes testing at one high school Read the full description.

Piece Audio

Playing: Put to the Test Part 3 (of 6)
From: WUNC

Default-piece-image-2 Six years ago, President Bush signed "No Child Left Behind." The law requires states to prove students are learning. Now schools across the country are using standardized tests to measure and quantify student progress. The goal is to get every student to pass the tests by the year 2014. The clock is ticking, and so far the results are mixed. There?s evidence that elementary students are doing better on national tests in math, but little to show much improvement at the high school level. And some studies actually show a decline in reading skills since No Child Left Behind was passed. What?s going on? Are the tests helping? Is education getting better? To look for answers, reporters from North Carolina Public Radio-WUNC teamed up with American RadioWorks, the documentary unit of American Public Media. They spent two years at Western Guilford High School in Greensboro, North Carolina to observe up-close how ?No Child Left Behind? is working. In this six part series, we follow two students and their teacher over the course of two school years to explore how standardized testing is changing schools, and education.

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Put to the Test Part 6 (of 6) (07:38)
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Series on the impact of NCLB and high stakes testing at one high school

Put to the Test Part 5 (of 6) (07:20)
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Series on the impact of NCLB and high stakes testing at one high school

Put to the Test Part 4 (of 6) (05:21)
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Series on the impact of NCLB and high stakes testing at one high school

Put to the Test Part 2 (of 6) (07:51)
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Put to the Test Part 1 (of 6) (06:19)
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Piece Description

Six years ago, President Bush signed "No Child Left Behind." The law requires states to prove students are learning. Now schools across the country are using standardized tests to measure and quantify student progress. The goal is to get every student to pass the tests by the year 2014. The clock is ticking, and so far the results are mixed. There?s evidence that elementary students are doing better on national tests in math, but little to show much improvement at the high school level. And some studies actually show a decline in reading skills since No Child Left Behind was passed. What?s going on? Are the tests helping? Is education getting better? To look for answers, reporters from North Carolina Public Radio-WUNC teamed up with American RadioWorks, the documentary unit of American Public Media. They spent two years at Western Guilford High School in Greensboro, North Carolina to observe up-close how ?No Child Left Behind? is working. In this six part series, we follow two students and their teacher over the course of two school years to explore how standardized testing is changing schools, and education.

Broadcast History

"Put to the Test" originally aired as a one hour documentary, part of American RadioWorks Fall 2007 season. This is a six part news series updated for January 2008. It ran during Morning Edition on North Carolina Public Radio - WUNC.

Transcript

Put to the Test: PRX
Part 3
7:36
Piece begins with ambi (basketball game); Piece ends with actuality
There is no reporter SOC on any of the pieces in this series; you can bring up music and go straight to HOST OUTRO below, or bring up music and have your host do a back ID ?That was Emily Hanford reporting? and then go to HOST OUTRO
HOST INTRO:
Today we continue a series exploring the impact of the ?No Child Left Behind? Law.
We?re reporting from Western Guilford High School in Greensboro. Yesterday, we met two struggling 9th graders, Jessica Giardullo and RJ McLaughlin. The 2005 school year is underway. Western is under intense pressure to raise test scores. And the school has put RJ, Jessica and 83 other freshmen in a special set of classes designed to bring them up to speed, fast.
Emily Hanford has part 3 of our series ?Put to the Test.?

HOST OUTRO:
Tomorrow, we ret...
Read the full transcript