Hearing on NCLB reauthorization set Monday

Analysis from CSBA’s Governmental Relations Department

The U.S. House of Representatives’ House Education and Labor Committee will convene its first hearing Monday on a draft discussion plan for the reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act.

As drafted, the 435-page proposal would allow states to use more than annual tests in reading and math to rate schools; give credit to states for students who are projected to reach proficiency within three years; and require states to test certain students with limited English skills in their native language. For schools that fall only slightly short of academic targets, the proposal would also lift requirements to provide after-school tutoring and let students transfer to other schools. This proposal would also endorse allowing states to rate schools based on the progress of individual students, rather than comparing, for example, this year's third-graders with last year's, building on a trial “growth-model” accountability program the Bush administration recently launched.

This draft would also put new emphasis on high school dropouts, proposing resources to help schools with the lowest graduation rates have “data-driven decision making, improved curriculum and instruction, personalization of the school environment, staff collaboration and professional development and individualized student supports,” according to a summary of the plan. As proposed, states would be able to use multiple measures to rate schools. According to the summary, this could include “graduation rates, dropout rates, college-going rates, percentages of students successfully completing end-of-course exams for college preparatory courses” and improvement in the performance of the worst and best students in a school.

Related links:
* The 11-page summary of the draft plan is @  http://edlabor.house.gov/bills/MillerMcKeonNCLBDiscussionDraftSummary.pdf
* The entire 435-page draft is @ http://edlabor.house.gov/bills/MillerMcKeonNCLBDiscussionDraft.pdf