Editorial: Offering students a bribe

Tuesday, March 13, 2007 | 7:16 a.m.

Is this what our nation's education system has come down to - win a chance at an iPod if you take a mandatory test?

In an attempt to drive student attendance at tests, some administrators and teachers in Clark County are promising raffles for cash, gift certificates and electronics, among other things, as Emily Richmond reported in Saturday's Las Vegas Sun.

Thanks to federal and state standards - all products of the flawed No Child Left Behind Act - schoolteachers and administrators are bribing students to take achievement tests, which are used to grade school performance.

One of the key problems is that regulations require at least 95 percent of the students take the test at a school or else that school - no matter how it scores - is deemed to have failed and needs improvement. Such a designation puts a scarlet letter next to a school's name and puts the principal on notice to improve or look for another job.

Obviously that is motivation for principals and administrators, but this testing provision in the law is flawed, pushing compliance with pedantic rules rather than championing real educational achievement.

The law can lead to schools teaching students that they are doing the school a favor just by showing up for a mandatory test.

Rancho High School Principal Bob Chesto is trying to improve on last year, when his school barely missed the attendance mark - 94.22 percent of the students took the reading and writing proficiency test.

"Are we bribing kids? Sure," Chesto said. "But who doesn't? You don't go to work without a paycheck. Most of our kids will show up because they know they should, not for the prizes. This is just an extra bonus."

We can sympathize with Chesto's plight, but we agree with Las Vegas Academy Principal Richard Clark, who argues that what students receive for showing up and passing the test - a high school diploma - is reward enough.