'Tis the season to bust out every working mom's friend, the ole Crockpot. Speaking of pressure cookers, I have been musing on the NCLB policy divide during this eerie lull before Congress takes up reauthorization again. On one side are those who believe we should leave NCLB unchanged because it keeps the pressure on states, districts and schools to improve student achievement, particularly that of poor and minority students.  On the other side are those who say NCLB must be fixed to relieve some of this pressure and prevent unintended consequences like the lowering of state proficiency standards and teaching to the test.

I understand the perspective of the "keep the pressure on" crowd, but the problem is that it's not meat and potatoes inside the Crockpot, it's teachers and students who are feeling the heat. Do we need to keep the focus on closing the achievement gap? Absolutely. At the same time, do we need to acknowledge that NCLB must be changed so that teachers and others can feel hopeful, not hopeless, about meeting achievement goals? Yes.

Schools, like all organizations, function best when goals are clear and achievable; otherwise a dangerous sense of powerless takes hold. I think an argument can be made to turn the pressure down on the Crockpot without sacrificing the education of our most vulnerable students. Perhaps, given the implosion of Miller-McKeon, folks in Congress are now poised to listen to this argument.