Reg Weaver, president of the National Education Association, recounted the chilling effects the No Child Left Behind Act has had on America's classrooms and schools in testimony during a rare joint hearing by the House and Senate education committees March 13. Ed McElroy, president of the American Federation of Teachers, also testified.

Weaver urged Congress to consider broader policy changes that would, among other things, do the following:

• Reduce class sizes.
• Adopt dropout prevention programs.
• Infuse 21st century skills into schools.
• Recruit and retain qualified teachers by offering professional pay and development.

"While NCLB has laudable goals that we support -- closing achievement gaps and raising student achievement for all -- its overly prescriptive and punitive accountability provisions have failed to move our nation closer to those goals," Weaver said. "It has had many unintended consequences, such as narrowing of the curriculum, that have actually moved us away from those goals."

If Congress chooses to make minor adjustments to the law rather than sweeping changes, Weaver recommended the following improvements.

• Allowing the use of growth models.
• Mandating multiple measures of assessment.
• Developing a system that rewards successes and helps schools.
• Extending the time English-language learners have to master the language before being tested in English.
• Using grade-level appropriate assessments for special education students.
• Closing loopholes in the highly qualified teacher definition.

Weaver also testified on the law in July before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. He praised lawmakers' efforts to invite teachers to participate in the reauthorization debate.