Obama Revamps No Child Left Behind

But he says in practice it fell short and used a cookie-cutter approach.

It is hoped that the new law, as it unfolds and is implemented in the states, will result in more experienced teachers staying in teaching rather than leaving in frustration over disputed methods, policies and testing regimens. While ESSA officially marks the end of the NCLB era, the majority of states have for several years received waivers from the Obama administration, exempting them from some of the law’s toughest requirements.

No Child Left Behind, which President George W. Bush signed into law in 2001, required federal involvement in the nation’s public schools over the last decade. No there were, but I really think this is a good example of how bipartisanship can work.

“That’s something that you don’t always see here in Washington”, Obama said. This law only takes effect in the 2017-18 school year, and as Obama warned this morning, “now the hard work begins”.

Under the new act, schools will still have to test students in third through eighth grades and again in high school, but teachers have more flexibility when it comes to doing the testing. Standardized tests will not be the only factor considered when evaluating a school.

“It wasn’t long after the law was passed that we realized it was full of flaws”, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said shortly before the vote.

Don’t start applauding yet, kids.

McCluskey, who is the associate director of Cato’s Center for Educational Freedom, says the bill states the secretary of education shall not exercise any direction or supervision over state standards.

Gives states more control over their assessment systems by allowing states to conduct audits of state and local assessment systems to eliminate unnecessary assessments. It’s a new education bill and it’s being touted as an improvement to No Child Left Behind. It becomes more of a state decision.

One of the outcomes of the new law is expected to be a reduction in the amount of standardized testing that today’s students are subjected to.

The legislation requires that test scores be broken down by race, family income and disability status.

The grants program would use existing funding to help states improve quality and access to preschool.

It’s now up to the states.

Under the legislation, states would also have to identify the lowest-performing schools and provide further supports for their students and staff members.