This letter to the editor by Secretary Rod Paige appeared in The Los Angeles Times on November 13, 2004.

John Gust seems to think the No Child Left Behind Act has turned teachers into automatons and students into robots ("Are Schools Building Minds or Machines?" Voices, Nov. 6). Ironically, it's Gust himself who mindlessly repeats arguments unsupported by the facts. Under the act, California's schools have received more than $426 million in Reading First grants to train teachers in proven instructional methods, not learning fads. Students are regularly measured so they can receive help when they need it. And parents have more information, choices and opportunities for involvement than ever before.

As a result, nearly two-thirds of California's schools have met their academic achievement goals in 2004, compared with 54% a year ago. These goals were not spit out by a computer in Washington, but developed by educators in California.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Unified School District has seen its Academic Performance Index scores rise at a rate faster than the state's. Who deserves the credit? Not machines, but hard-working teachers and students.

Rod Paige, U.S. Secretary of Education