President Obama announced yesterday that ten states will receive flexibility from the federal education law, NCLB (No Child Left Behind). Obama made the waiver process available after Congress failed to rewrite the legislation which Obama says, "is driving the wrong behaviors, from teaching to the test to federally determined, one-size-fits-all interventions." (Office of the Press Secretary, Feb. 9, 2012) Although Idaho was not one of the ten states to receive this flexibility, the Idaho Department of Education plans to send in their waiver application by February 21st.
In order to be approved for a waiver, Idaho must have a specific plan to "raise standards, improve accountability, and undertake essential reforms to improve teacher effectiveness." (Office of the Press Secretary, Feb. 9, 2012) Superintendent Luna and the State Board of Education believe the Students Come First legislation, which includes a five-star rating system for schools, will fulfill the federal requirements and earn Idaho flexibility from No Child Left Behind mandates.
Under Idaho's five-star system, scores on standardized tests would be used to measure student progress in grades 3-10. Graduation rates, the number of students participating in advanced placement courses, mandatory credits through online classes and a required SAT exam for all juniors would be used in later grades. (Bonner, 2012)
As with anything education related in Idaho, there are proponents, opponents and many unanswered questions. For opponents, it seems that Luna's plan is NCLB on steroids. They believe Students Come First does nothing to improve teacher effectiveness, avoid teaching to the test or implementing one-size-fits-all interventions. It will be interesting to see if Luna and the State Board of Education has the right answers for the federal government, as well as Idahoans who vote to keep or scrap the Students Come First legislation in November.
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Bonner, Jessie. (2012). Idaho's No Child Left Behind plan praised, panned. Associated Press. Retrieved from http://www.idahopress.com/news/state/idaho-s-no-child-left-behind-plan-p...
The White House, Office of the Press Secretary. (2012). No Child Left Behind, announces flexibility in exchange for reform for ten states [press release]. Retrieved from http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/02/09/no-child-left-behi...
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