The good — and bad — news about how some states want to evaluate schools in post-NCLB era
The U.S. Education Department just announced that plans submitted by 16 states and the District of Columbia showing how they will comply with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act — the successor law to No Child Left Behind — are now complete and ready for staff and peer review.
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has repeatedly said she wants to allow states to make their own education policy, but it remains to be seen whether she will approve all of the plans as they are or whether she will insist that those that do not push for increased school choice modify their plans to do so.
There are other important issues the plans cover as well, including how states will evaluate schools and districts in improving student achievement, and what role standardized testing will play. In this post, Monty Neill, executive director of the nonprofit National Center for Fair and Open Testing, looks at how the plans address testing and accountability. The center, known as FairTest, works to end the abuse and misuse of standardized tests.
Along with the District of Columbia, here are the 16 states that submitted their plans by the spring deadline and will now be reviewed: Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, North Dakota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont.
By Monty Neill
In April, both houses of the Maryland legislature voted unanimously to cap the time students can spend on state and district testing. Legislators also enacted a law, over Gov. Larry Hogan’s veto, to markedly improve the state’s plan for implementing the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
The new Maryland law prohibits use of an “A-F” school rating scheme. It ensures local educators have at least three years to implement district-determined improvement plans. It also bars privatizing schools identified for improvement under ESSA. The victories were won by a strong alliance of the The good — and bad — news about how some states want to evaluate schools in post-NCLB era - The Washington Post:
