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Published: October 25, 2006

No Child Left Behind on the Campaign Trail

By Alyson Klein

Bridgeport, Conn.

Sitting in the back of a dimly lighted auditorium at = Housatonic=20 Community College here, Sarah Thornton listened as U.S. Rep. Christopher = Shays,=20 a Republican, and Diane Farrell, his Democratic challenger, debated such = issues=20 as Medicare and the war in Iraq before asking the candidates about the = issue she=20 cared most about: How do they plan to improve Bridgeport=E2=80=99s = floundering public=20 school system?

Ms. Thornton said later she doesn=E2=80=99t want her younger sister = to find herself=20 in the position she=E2=80=99s in now, struggling to catch up on basic = skills in college.=20 She never really learned how to write a paper because she didn=E2=80=99t = have a=20 full-time English teacher during three out of her four years at this = city=E2=80=99s=20 Central High School, she said, only long-term substitutes who = =E2=80=9Ctook attendance=20 and passed us along.=E2=80=9D Now, finishing her associate=E2=80=99s = degree in general studies=20 at Housatonic, she turns in her papers a week early so that her = instructors can=20 give her feedback and she can make corrections.

In response to her query, the candidates touched on education and = community=20 revival before shifting to a discussion of taxes and other issues. That=20 frustrated Ms. Thornton, 19.

=20

U.S. Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., right, makes = a point=20 during a debate in Stamford, Conn., this month as his challengers, Diane = Farell,=20 a Democrat, and Phil Maymin, a Libertarian, listen.

=E2=80=94Bob Child/AP

=E2=80=9CThey didn=E2=80=99t answer my question,=E2=80=9D Ms. = Thornton said after the debate. =E2=80=9CThey=20 just yelled at each other back and forth.=E2=80=9D

The Shays-Farrell race is one of three closely watched contests in=20 Connecticut that could help determine control of the U.S. House of=20 Representatives in the midterm elections Nov. 7. It is also one of the = few races=20 nationwide in which the efficacy of the federal No Child Left Behind Act = is=20 getting more than passing mention, and where the Republican and = Democratic=20 candidates have staked out significantly differing positions.

That attention is especially appropriate in a state that itself is = suing the=20 federal government over the law. Connecticut=E2=80=99s high-profile U.S. = Senate race=20 also features candidates who have made an issue of the nearly 5-year-old = law.=20

As the campaign moves into the final stretch, both candidates for the = state=E2=80=99s=20 4th Congressional District seat are trying to convince voters that they = are best=20 able to steer federal education policy toward closing the achievement = gap=20 between schools like the one Ms. Thornton attended in industrial, urban=20 Bridgeport and those in the wealthy, woodsy suburban towns that dominate = much of=20 the district.

But, during the Oct. 10 debate here, it was clear that the candidates = have=20 very different ideas on what approach Congress should take to close such = gaps.=20 Rep. Shays, who is 61 and in his ninth term, voted for the No Child Left = Behind=20 Act in 2001. He still supports the law, which is the centerpiece of = President=20 Bush=E2=80=99s education agenda, although he favors more flexibility in = testing=20 English-language learners and students with disabilities.

=E2=80=9CI agree with members on both sides of the aisle voting for = the No Child Left=20 Behind bill,=E2=80=9D Mr. Shays said. =E2=80=9CIt=E2=80=99s interesting: = It passed on a bipartisan=20 basis, but as soon as some teachers=E2=80=99 unions started to object to = it, then=20 politicians started to back away from it.=E2=80=9D

He said the law was modeled partly on Connecticut=E2=80=99s own = accountability=20 system, which employs the Connecticut Mastery Test. The difference, he = said, is=20 that his state=E2=80=99s exams =E2=80=9Chad no consequences. No Child = Left Behind has=20 consequences.=E2=80=9D

The law, a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education = Act,=20 requires that the states test all students in reading and math in grades = 3=20 through 8 and at least once in high school. Schools that fail to meet=20 achievement targets under the law are subject to increasingly serious = sanctions,=20 including the loss of federal funds.

Rep. Shays said during the debate he supports more funding for the = federal=20 law, but he pointed out that after passing the measure, Congress did = boost=20 education spending significantly.

=E2=80=9CI=E2=80=99m not backing away from No Child Left = Behind,=E2=80=9D he said. =E2=80=9CBecause I=E2=80=99m going=20 to ask you, what was it like before? If our children are going to = compete with=20 children from India and other places, they need to get a good = education.=E2=80=9D

Ms. Farrell, 51, a former Westport selectwoman, a position similar to = mayor,=20 said that schools are =E2=80=9Csuffering under the punitive approach of = No Child Left=20 Behind.=E2=80=9D

She said her mother was a special education teacher, one brother = teaches 3rd=20 grade, and the other is a high school principal. While she supports the = law=E2=80=99s=20 goals, she would like it to be less punitive and more focused on = providing=20 federal resources to schools that need them, including extra teacher = training=20 and smaller classes.

=E2=80=9CWe have an achievement gap; we see it every day in = Bridgeport,=E2=80=9D she said.=20 =E2=80=9CThe reality is you have to revise this legislation to make it = meaningful.=E2=80=9D

Later that day, during a campaign stop at a Head Start school in = Norwalk,=20 Conn., Ms. Farrell showed 4-year-old Joshua, a pupil at the school, how = to make=20 each of the letters in her first name, as she talked about the No Child = Left=20 Behind law.

=E2=80=9CIt=E2=80=99s a stick approach, as opposed to a carrot = approach,=E2=80=9D she said in an=20 interview. =E2=80=9CThe title is the best thing about it.=E2=80=9D

Connecticut Congressional Races at a Glance

*Click image to see the full chart.

SOURCE: Education Week

She said she does not think that students need to be tested every = year. She=20 noted that before the law=E2=80=99s enactment, Connecticut tested its = students in 4th,=20 6th, 8th, and 10th grades. She said that accountability system was = successful.=20

She also criticized the federal law=E2=80=99s provisions allowing = students to=20 transfer out of schools that consistently fail to meet achievement = targets,=20 saying the policy is unrealistic because a majority of schools in some = of the=20 nation=E2=80=99s most troubled districts fail to meet the law=E2=80=99s = goals, leaving students=20 with nowhere to go.

Ms. Farrell said that there is a role for the federal government in = school=20 accountability, but that assessments should focus more on critical = thinking.=20 Measuring learning =E2=80=9Cis not quite as black and white as some = federally mandated=20 standardized tests,=E2=80=9D she said.

Ms. Farrell is a former advertising executive for J. Walter Thompson = Inc., a=20 large New York City-based agency. She also served as the PTA president = at=20 Coleytown Elementary School in Westport. She said she knows that her = views on=20 the education law don=E2=80=99t necessarily coincide with those of = Democratic education=20 leaders in Congress, including Sen. Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, = the=20 ranking Democrat on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions = Committee, and=20 Rep. George Miller of California, the top Democrat on the House = Education and=20 the Workforce Committee.

Both lawmakers, who are counted among the architects of the No Child = Left=20 Behind legislation, have sought some of the additional resources for the = law=20 that she called for during the debate. But Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Miller=20 steadfastly support the basic framework of the law, which is scheduled = for=20 reauthorization next year.

=E2=80=9CI have to respectfully disagree with them,=E2=80=9D Ms. = Farrell said. =E2=80=9CThat=E2=80=99s where=20 an independent, fresh look at the law could work to its = advantage.=E2=80=9D

Ms. Farrell has been endorsed by the Connecticut Education = Association, an=20 affiliate of the 3.2 million-member National Education Association.

=E2=80=9CShe understands that the way the law is designed basically = sets everyone up=20 for failure, and that we need to put more money into needy places, not = waste it=20 on testing provisions,=E2=80=9D said Mary Loftus Levine, the = CEA=E2=80=99s political-action=20 coordinator. =E2=80=9C[Mr. Shays=E2=80=99] position was, = =E2=80=98Let=E2=80=99s let this law work, it=E2=80=99s done all=20 these great things. It=E2=80=99s raised the bar.=E2=80=99 But it = hasn=E2=80=99t done any good.=E2=80=9D

Ms. Farrell isn=E2=80=99t the only Democratic challenger in a U.S. = House race in=20 Connecticut seeking to use her position on the No Child Left Behind law = to=20 distinguish herself from a Republican incumbent. Although Connecticut = voters=20 supported the Democratic presidential nominees in 2000 and 2004, = Republicans=20 hold three of the state=E2=80=99s five House seats.

With steep drops in the popularity of President Bush and the=20 Republican-controlled Congress, Democrats see a takeover opportunity in = the=20 state=E2=80=99s GOP-held House districts. They have poured resources = into defeating the=20 incumbents=E2=80=94Reps. Shays, Rob Simmons, and Nancy L. Johnson. The = two seats held by=20 Democrats are considered noncompetitive.

=20

Ned Lamont, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. = Senate in=20 Connecticut, addresses students at the University of Connecticut at = Storrs last=20 month. Mr. Lamont, who defeated Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman in the = Democratic=20 primary, has said the No Child Left Behind Act is = =E2=80=9Cirrelevant=E2=80=9D to what is going=20 on in classrooms. Sen. Lieberman, who is running as an Independent, = voted for=20 the law but favors some revisions to it.

=E2=80=94Bob Child/AP

The No Child Left Behind Act has come up in all three competitive = House races=20 in the state, as well as the Senate race, in which businessman Ned = Lamont=20 defeated three-term incumbent Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman, a Democrat, in = the=20 August primary. Sen. Lieberman is now running a strong Independent bid = against=20 Mr. Lamont in the general election, with Republican candidate Alan = Schlesinger=20 widely seen as out of contention.

K-12 education policy, which is rarely a defining issue in = congressional=20 races, has been especially overshadowed this year by issues such as the = war in=20 Iraq, the economy, and energy policy, both here and nationally.

Nevertheless, the No Child Left Behind Act is a prickly issue in the=20 Constitution State. Connecticut=E2=80=99s suit over the law seeks to = force the federal=20 government to increase its funding to a level that the state contends = would be=20 sufficient to meet its mandates. A federal judge last month dismissed = three of=20 the suit=E2=80=99s four claims on procedural grounds, but he allowed one = claim to go=20 forward.

=E2=80=9CNo Child Left Behind has not been terribly = successful,=E2=80=9D said Gary L. Rose, a=20 professor of politics at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn. He = said=20 that while the law received broad bipartisan support in Congress, most=20 Connecticut voters associate it with President Bush, whose approval = ratings are=20 low in every congressional district in the state. =E2=80=9CIt=E2=80=99s = just one more arrow in=20 the quiver [the Democrats] can use against President Bush.=E2=80=9D

The Shays-Farrell race is a rematch of 2004, when Ms. Farrell = garnered 48=20 percent of the vote to Rep. Shays=E2=80=99 52 percent. That year, Sen. = John Kerry,=20 D-Mass., carried the district in his presidential bid, beating President = Bush by=20 52 percent to 46 percent.

Rep. Shays has been able to hold Connecticut=E2=80=99s 4th District = seat for nearly=20 two decades largely because he works to portray himself as fiercely = independent=20 from his party=E2=80=99s leaders. He has a voting record putting him = almost in the=20 center of the House, according to National Journal, a = Washington-based=20 non-partisan publication that tracks federal politics.

In Congress, Mr. Shays bucked House GOP leaders by becoming a key = sponsor of=20 sweeping legislation, enacted in 2002, that placed new restrictions on = campaign=20 financing. But to the chagrin of some 4th District voters, Mr. Shays = voted in=20 2002 to authorize the use of force in Iraq. He has made 14 trips there = since the=20 conflict began and has recently proposed setting specific timelines for = Iraqi=20 forces to replace American troops.

Marching in a Columbus Day parade down Wayne Street in Bridgeport, = through a=20 neighborhood of small, older single-family homes and locally owned = Mexican and=20 Italian eateries, Rep. Shays stopped frequently to chat with voters, = running=20 back to catch up to the parade. He seemed undaunted by the prevalence of = lawn=20 signs in support of his opponent in this Democratic stronghold, which = backed Ms.=20 Farrell two years ago.

=20

Rep. Rob Simmons, R-Conn., left, greets Democrat = Joe Courtney=20 before a debate. The race is one of three close U.S. House contests in=20 Connecticut.

=E2=80=94Khoi Ton/The = Day/AP

Still, some voters who live in or near Bridgeport said they feel they = know=20 Rep. Shays well and trust him. Joseph DiMenna, who recently retired as = an=20 elementary school principal, said he has met the congressman several = times and=20 is impressed by his independence.

=E2=80=9CI think he=E2=80=99s doing an admirable job,=E2=80=9D said = Mr. DiMenna, who was marching=20 with the Bridgeport Area Cultural Italian Organization. =E2=80=9CHe = votes the issues,=20 rather than the party. He=E2=80=99s not getting a fair shake from the = teachers=E2=80=99 union or=20 any of the unions.=E2=80=9D

Mr. DiMenna said he supports the principles of the No Child Left = Behind Act,=20 but feels that it has not been implemented properly.

=E2=80=9CIt think it=E2=80=99s a good vehicle, =E2=80=A6 but they = haven=E2=80=99t funded it,=E2=80=9D he said, =E2=80=9Cand=20 it=E2=80=99s been very punitive when it shouldn=E2=80=99t have = been.=E2=80=9D

Still, he thinks that more accountability, backed by the federal = government,=20 is generally the right step for K-12 education. He said he trusts Mr. = Shays to=20 take a close look at the law during the reauthorization process and to = push for=20 flexibility where it is needed.

Fairfield, Conn., is less than 10 minutes down Interstate 95 from = Bridgeport,=20 but it might as well be in another universe. Centered around a = commuter-rail=20 station, the downtown shopping area looks like a scene out of a J. Crew = catalog:=20 colorful, wood-sided buildings housing art galleries, a gourmet grocery, = and=20 upscale retail stores such as Banana Republic.

Sitting in the cafe section of a Borders bookstore with her two sons, = who are=20 8 and 14, Nerina Maggi, a district manager for Burlington Coat Factory, = was=20 eager to talk about the House race.

=E2=80=9CI=E2=80=99m supporting Chris Shays,=E2=80=9D she said, = adding that she has =E2=80=9Cwatched him for=20 a long time,=E2=80=9D and that he dropped by to greet her son and other = students from=20 his school when they took a trip to Washington.

She said also backs the No Child Left Behind Act.

=E2=80=9CThat=E2=80=99s Bush=E2=80=99s plan, right?=E2=80=9D she = said. =E2=80=9CI=E2=80=99m all for it. I don=E2=80=99t know that our=20 schools are really dedicated to it. I know a lot of schools that really = don=E2=80=99t=20 hold teachers accountable.=E2=80=9D

She sends her children to private schools because she believe the = public=20 schools near her home in Shelton, Conn., are overcrowded.

Browsing in the bookstore=E2=80=99s greeting-card section, Ryan = Odinak, a former=20 special education teacher who now heads the Fairfield Arts Council, said = that=20 although she has voted for Rep. Shays in the past, she plans to support = Ms.=20 Farrell this year.

Ms. Odinak, a Democrat, said she feels the No Child Left Behind Act = has not=20 been successful in Connecticut because accountability =E2=80=9Chas to go = hand in hand=20 with the resources to do something about=E2=80=9D the achievement gap. = The federal=20 government has not followed through with its funding promises, she said. =

Still, although education is usually a top issue for Ms. Odinak, her = views on=20 the school improvement law were not what swayed her this time.

=E2=80=9CIt was the war that tipped me on Shays,=E2=80=9D she = said.

PHOTO: Ned Lamont, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. = Senate in=20 Connecticut, addresses students at the University of Connecticut at = Storrs last=20 month. Mr. Lamont, who defeated Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman in the = Democratic=20 primary, has said the No Child Left Behind Act is = =E2=80=9Cirrelevant=E2=80=9D to what is going=20 on in classrooms. Sen. Lieberman, who is running as an Independent, = voted for=20 the law but favors some revisions to it.

=E2=80=94Bob Child/AP

PHOTO: U.S. Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., right, = makes a=20 point during a debate in Stamford, Conn., this month as his challengers, = Diane=20 Farell, a Democrat, and Phil Maymin, a Libertarian, listen.

=E2=80=94Bob Child/AP

PHOTO: Rep. Rob Simmons, R-Conn., left, greets = Democrat Joe=20 Courtney before a debate. The race is one of three close U.S. House = contests in=20 Connecticut.

=E2=80=94Khoi Ton/The Day/AP

Vol. 26, Issue 09, Pages = 34-36

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=E2= =80=9CBush Says=20 He=E2=80=99s Ready to Fight for Renewal of NCLB,=E2=80=9D October 11,=20 2006.

=E2= =80=9CShakeup of=20 Technical High Schools in Conn. Pays Off,=E2=80=9D October 11,=20 2006.

=E2= =80=9C3 of 4=20 Claims in Conn.=E2=80=99s NCLB Suit Dismissed,=E2=80=9D October 4,=20 2006.

=E2=80=9CConn.=20 Sees Legal Boost for Its NCLB Suit,=E2=80=9D July = 12, 2006.=20

=E2= =80=9CConnecticut=20 Files Court Challenge to NCLB,=E2=80=9D August = 31, 2005.=20

=E2= =80=9CConnecticut=20 Pledges First State Legal Challenge to NCLB Law,=E2=80=9D April 13,=20 2005.

=E2= =80=9CConn.=20 Chief Seeks Help for 8 Schools,=E2=80=9D December = 8, 2004.=20

See other stories on education issues in Connecticut. See data on=20 Connecticut's public school system.

For background, previous stories, and Web links, read = No Child = Left=20 Behind.

For more stories on this topic see No Child = Left=20 Behind and Washington. =

Read U.S. Rep. Christopher Shays' biography and his = stance on = education. His challenger, Democrat Diane Farrell, also provides her = biographical = information and education= plan and=20 record.

The Connecticut State=20 Department of Education offers state, district, and school NCLB=20 results, as well as information on dist= rict and=20 school improvement.

The U.S.=20 Department of Education offers an overview=20 on NCLB's impact on schools in Connecticut. 3D"Requires

The State of=20 Connecticut Attorney General's Office has listed the latest= information=20 and court documents relating to the state's lawsuit challenging the = No Child=20 Left Behind Act.

=C2=A9=20 2006 Editorial Projects in Education