Toward a new ESEA

The 600-page bipartisan bill to replace NCLB, crafted after months of negotiations between Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), would end federal high-stakes testing and grant more power to states, reports Lyndsey Layton for The Washington Post. States would still administer reading and math tests to students in grades three through eight, as well as once in high school, and science tests once in elementary, middle, and high school. However, they could choose one end-of-year test or a series of smaller tests that combined to create an overall measurement of student achievement. States would design their own systems to hold schools accountable; these must include graduation rates, English proficiency rates for English learners, and some measure of college or career readiness. They could also include other measures, such as how much students grow academically over a school year, or the number of students enrolled in AP or honors classes. States would also decide whether to evaluate teachers, and how to do so. The bill removes the NCLB requirement that teachers of core subjects in high-poverty schools be "highly qualified." It also creates a competitive grant program to help districts develop, expand, or improve merit-pay programs for teachers, principals, and school leaders.More

Source:  Public Education News Blast

Published by LEAP

Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) is an education support organization that works as a collaborative partner in high-poverty communities.