No Child Left Behind. The No Child Left Behind Act ( NCLB) seeks to get all Americans to address the condition of their local schools, and to get involved in improving them. While DoDEA does not fall under the legislative requirements of NCLB, we recognize that we have an overwhelming ethical responsibility to our stakeholders to implement the intent of NCLB. In terms of the outcomes or expectations that NCLB articulated, DoDDS-Pacific/DDESS-Guam and DoDEA are already moving forward and, in fact, leading the way. DoDEA is in the vanguard of school systems using and reporting this type of accountability data. Our vision is set forth in Goal 1, Highest Student Achievement, of the DoDEA Community Strategic Plan (CSP), which states, “All students will meet or exceed challenging standards in academic content so that they are prepared for continuous learning and productive citizenship.” To demonstrate accountability, we currently participate in a number of system-wide norm-referenced and criterion-referenced performance assessments at different grade levels. Most notably, all our students in grades 3-11 are tested on the CTB TERRA NOVA Multiple Assessment, a norm-referenced standardized achievement test. We are also tested on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the “Nation's Report Card,” and we continuously monitor progress and inform our public about the achievement of our students.

Science Pre-Implementation . SY 2004-05 marks the pre-implementation year for the curricular area of science. Through the remainder of the school year, science will be the focus of many staff development opportunities provided by the Education Division of the DoDDS-Pacific/DDESS-Guam Director's Office. Each elementary and secondary teacher will participate in two days of training that integrates the new DoDEA science standards; newly adopted science materials, inquiry-based instruction, and teaching and assessing for scientific understanding. Training on the JASON Expedition: Disappearing Wetlands has already been provided to one sixth grade teacher in every Pacific elementary and middle school. Over the next several months newly adopted Science materials will be arriving in the schools.

Community Outreach Programs Showcase Community Interaction. Thanks to the commitment and dedication of many DoDDS-Pacific educators and professionals, 14 special needs athletes from the Okinawa Koto-Yogo School located in Gushikawa City were able to compete in the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Nagano Japan. The team was established just four years ago in support of Special Olympics Nippon. This represents the first time a team from Okinawa participated in the world games. Service members on Okinawa from the Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy volunteered hundreds of hours to help train these athletes and enhance their skills and knowledge about floor hockey. The Okinawa Floor Hockey Team won the Silver Medal, while Tunisia won the Gold and Gibraltar the Bronze.  We are very proud of these fine young people and of the support provided our Okinawan friends by Americans stationed on the island.