On February 9th President Obama signed a waiver allowing ten states, including Minnesota, to be exempt from the federal act No Child Left Behind. States all over the nation can apply for a waiver from the bill, all they need is an appropriate plan of their own.
No Child Left Behind, an act passed during the Bush administration in 2001 states that schools who receive federal funding must take a series of standardized tests. Each year, the schools must make annual yearly progress (AYP) meaning one grade must do better on the test than the grade before it.
There are various levels of consequences if the schools do not make AYP. If schools miss it one year they lose some funding, if the school misses it again, the school is labeled “in need on improvement” and must make a two year plan for improvement, if a school misses AYP four years in a row action, such as replacing the entire staff, may be taken.
Due to the recent executive order, Edina High School is now exempt from these rules. When asked about what changes we would see at EHS Mr. Michael Pretasky, dean of students, said “Not a lot. We are still held to the same level of accountability by the state.” Students will still be subject to standardized tests, but the standards will now be set by the state government rather than the federal government. Edina students will still take the MCA tests in order to graduate and be evaluated by the state.
One of the few changes is the way students’ academic levels will be measured. “Instead of all students having to meet a specific foundational target, you can also measure growth” Mr. Pretasky said.
Many believed that No Child Left Behind put greater pressure on teachers to “teach the test.” Senate Education Committee member and Minnesota Senator Al Franken was one of those who opposed it. “Far too many schools all over our state have been unfairly sanctioned under the current one-size-fits-all model, and I’m pleased that the Obama Administration recognized that giving Minnesota some flexibility is the best way to serve our students,” Senator Franken said on his website.
