CORE districts win ground-breaking waiver from NCLB
By Tom Chorneau
Wednesday, August 07, 2013
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| Statement on NCLB Waiver Approval - Year 2013 |
"All California schools deserve relief from the unworkable mandates of No Child Left Behind"
In a move rife with policy implications nationwide, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan granted Tuesday eight California school districts relief from key mandates of the No Child Left Behind Act.
The waiver, the first ever given directly to school districts, covers more than 1 million students attending schools in Fresno, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland, Sacramento, San Francisco, Santa Ana and the Central Valley community of Sanger.
The agreement allows participating districts – all members of the California Office to Reform Education or CORE – to escape the most onerous NCLB requirements including demand that all students meet proficiency in reading and math by 2014.
In exchange, however, the eight districts have adopted their own accountability system that supporters argue will impose an even higher standard for student achievement.
“We are not running away from accountability – actually we have set a higher mark for ourselves,” said Chris Steinhauser, superintendent of the Long Beach Unified. “This is a journey of continuous improvement.”
Before Tuesday’s announcement, the U.S. Department of Education had only approved NCLB waivers to states – granting 37 since launching the waiver program two years ago after becoming frustrated with the inability of Congressional leaders to undertake serious negotiation over reauthorizing the nation’s primary law governing K-12 schools.
Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., chair of the House education committee, quickly criticized Tuesday’s action saying it
Students who attend an Early College high school are significantly more likely to enroll in a post-secondary institution and earn a degree than their peers, according to the results of a recently-released, multi-year study of 10 such schools.