Obama To Offer States A Break From ‘No Child Left Behind’
EmailABC News’ Mary Bruce (@marykbruce) Reports:
With efforts to overhaul “No Child Left Behind” stalled in Congress, the White House today announced it will offer states waivers from the federal education law, so long as they show progress in making education reforms.
“What we want to do is put forward a very simple trade-off,” Education Secretary Arne Duncan told reporters at today’s White House press briefing. “Where there’s a high bar, where folks are really doing the right thing for children, we want to give them a lot more flexibility; frankly, get out of their way and let them hit that higher bar.”
The current law — approved by Congress with overwhelming support in 2001 and signed by President George W. Bush in 2002 — requires students to be measured through standardized tests. States currently set their own standards for academic success and may risk federal funding if they fail to show adequate yearly progress in achieving their goals. Critics, including the Obama administration, claim the current system encourages states to lower, or “dummy down,” standards so they can report better progress.
“We have low expectations and states that have moved down as opposed to up expectations for our children. And we also have a punitive system that does not allow for reform. In fact, it’s a cookie-cutter system that is not allowing our students to move forward,” Obama’s Domestic Policy Adviser Melody Barnes said.
By offering a break from the legislation, the White House hopes states will be encouraged to make further reforms, even if it means their testing scores go down. “At a time when we have to get better, faster education than we ever have, we can’t afford to have the law of the land be one that has so many perverse incentives — or disincentives to the kind of progress we want to see,” Duncan said. “We want to remove those and reward those states that are telling the truth.”
The president sent Congress a proposal to revamp the legislation 16 months ago, but little progress has been made. Today the Secretary had a hard time explaining the hold up on Capitol Hill. “This should be bipartisan,” Duncan said. “We would love to see Congress act — no question that it should have happened. We hope it happens some point down the road, but it hasn’t, and we can’t afford to wait.”
The White House plans to finalize the waiver system over the next few weeks and present a plan at some point in September. Every state can apply but will have to show they are committed to reforms and standards designed to prepare students to be college and career-ready. “States are going to have to embrace the kind of reform that we believe is necessary to move our education system forward. But we encourage them and look forward to working with them as we try to provide them with this kind of flexibility,” Barnes said.
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I think rewarding honesty is a good thing. States should be recording where their children test accurately today so they can work on improving them.
This is a good time for them to come clean and start over right.
Posted by: Lydia | August 8, 2011, 5:32 pm 5:32 pm
I’d be more impressed if I didn’t suspect this is nothing more than a way to give Duncan’s privatized schools an escape hatch from impending failure to meet NCLB’s standards.
Posted by: whatever | August 8, 2011, 5:42 pm 5:42 pm
Would rather have a waiver or break from him and he would step down immediately. Please President Obama, do nothing else to so call help us or our children. No more tele-promoter speeches, saying nothing but only blaming.
Posted by: Freedom | August 8, 2011, 5:59 pm 5:59 pm
come clean and start over? how about prosecuting those teachers, administrators and districts that cheated and committed fraud to get more money. what kind of example are these people?
if you cant improve scores on a standardized test then you shouldnt be teaching. what our kids need to learn like reading writing and arithmatic…instead we teach spanish and gay people history? what a freak show this administration and democrats have become…do your jobs.
Posted by: catman | August 8, 2011, 6:16 pm 6:16 pm
More waivers? Just like healthcare, it will go to friends of Obama.
Posted by: wheresmymoney | August 8, 2011, 6:27 pm 6:27 pm
Waivers? After you find out a whole district in Atlanta were cheating by teachers changing test scores? Come on…now it doesn’t matter if test scores go down? I cannot believe what is happening to our children and the repercussions it will have to this country! Until the unions have either dramatic reform or are banned in our educational system, we are doomed to just throw money at the problem and see declining scores, and companies that go over seas for employees because our children are inept in the required skills! When is the public going to wake up and demand the end of the NEA and make these teachers accountable for teaching instead of parenting and pushing political agendas!!!! I am appalled, digusted, and fed up with this liberal agenda that promotes the decline of our children’s future!!!! Not too mention our country. Stop the madness of teacher tenure!!!!!!!
Posted by: Ell | August 8, 2011, 7:01 pm 7:01 pm
No way.
No creating some odd waiver system to circumvent the laws of the country.
Posted by: MayBee | August 8, 2011, 8:28 pm 8:28 pm
that’s just great..business needs waivers from the EPA.
Posted by: cindy | August 8, 2011, 8:28 pm 8:28 pm
It shouldn’t be up to Arnie Duncan, an individual, to decide what standards he wants America’s children to live up to in order for the school district to receive taxpayers’ money.
Posted by: MayBee | August 8, 2011, 8:32 pm 8:32 pm
that’s just great..business needs waivers from the EPA.
Posted by: cindy | Aug 8, 2011 8:28:51 PM
Yah! Let’s spread our filth and poison and effluent everywhere! Americans are God’s chosen people! We deserve it!
Posted by: Flamenco | August 8, 2011, 8:35 pm 8:35 pm
flamenco.. Have you traveled much? The USA has some of the highest standards in the world regarding pollution and the environment..some, one could argue, are a little too high…and are causing us great economic pain. It’s great to be an environmentalist, when you have food on the table and you can afford AC in the summer. We care about lizards and turtles and mice..alot..don’t you think humans deserve some attention too? And btw, Washington is handing out waivers like Halloween candy..education, health care..I thought good liberals were all about spreading the “candy” around, no?
Posted by: cindy | August 8, 2011, 8:53 pm 8:53 pm
The USA has some of the highest standards in the world regarding pollution and the environment..
that’s just great..business needs waivers from the EPA.
Posted by: cindy | Aug 8, 2011 8:28:51 PM
Yah! Let’s spread our filth and poison and effluent everywhere! Americans are God’s chosen people! We deserve it!
Posted by: Flamenco | August 8, 2011, 9:07 pm 9:07 pm
Flamenco- are you saying you aren’t a fan of the waiver idea?
Posted by: MayBee | August 8, 2011, 9:10 pm 9:10 pm
Every state can apply but will have to show they are committed to reforms and standards designed to prepare students to be college and career-ready. “States are going to have to embrace the kind of reform that we believe is necessary to move our education system forward.
=====
How is this not the executive branch nullifying existing law, creating its own law, and enforcing it?
Posted by: MayBee | August 8, 2011, 9:15 pm 9:15 pm
Posted by: MayBee | Aug 8, 2011 9:10:55 PM
The USA has some of the highest standards in the world regarding pollution and the environment..
that’s just great..business needs waivers from the EPA.
Posted by: cindy | Aug 8, 2011 8:28:51 PM
Yah! Let’s spread our filth and poison and effluent everywhere! Americans are God’s chosen people! We deserve it!
Posted by: Flamenco | August 8, 2011, 9:39 pm 9:39 pm
Obama has failed. He has ruined the Democratic party and is ruining the country as well. He cannot win in 2012. The Dems were very foolish to betray the brilliant leader Hillary Clinton for the not ready for prime time Obama. The only honorable thing for Obama to do now is step aside as LBJ did in 1968 to save the Democratic party and the country and endorse Hillary Clinton for President in 2012.
Posted by: KJ | August 9, 2011, 12:46 am 12:46 am
Waivers I thought was for his buddies so they did not have to have Obamacare. Now
States can get waivers because teachers
can not deal with children.
Posted by: deadwrestler | August 9, 2011, 1:06 am 1:06 am
Teaching just needs to go back to the way it was. It just too much pressure on the kids and the teachers. When the children come away with only skills on how to pass a standardized test that is a waist of money and time. What happened to the teachers teaching reading, writing and math and the kids really learning how to do the work. I watch children including my own walk away from these test discouraged and uninterested to learn. Learning is not fun anymore. Government needs to come into these classrooms and see how frustrating it is for the teachers and students. Find a better way!
Posted by: concernedmom79 | August 9, 2011, 1:57 am 1:57 am
hi i can say It does a lot of things, but here are a few whether you think they are good or bad, that are a part of it:
Posted by: Bellaplex | August 9, 2011, 4:47 am 4:47 am
Hide the poor education results so that the teachers unions can’t be held accountable. Next they will eliminate drug laws so they can claim that the crime rate goes down!!!
Posted by: Voice_Reason | August 9, 2011, 6:54 am 6:54 am
Opinions are like……. everybody has one. Unless you guys actually work in education, you should probably zip it. A one size fits all model is not for every child in every district. I work in education. Exceptional Education as well. A child with multiple disabilities will not perform at the same level as a child without those impairments. Nor can any reasonable and intelligent person expect a child from an impoverished, drug abusing, high crime area to perform consistently at the same level as a wealthy affluent high parental involvement area. Different demographics will and do produce different results. Especially when one child has to cope with a dead or imprisoned parent( many while they are taking these standardized tests) while others are just coming back from their vacation home in a far away state. The factors to influence a child’s mental state are much more varied than I can explain here at the moment, but I suggest you do some actual research on standardized test results in American schools. The results are not limited to your limited view on what may cause the varied data.
Posted by: Tony | August 9, 2011, 8:00 am 8:00 am
Dumb them down so they will vote democrat.
Posted by: daniel | August 9, 2011, 8:55 am 8:55 am
“Obama To Offer States A Break From ‘No Child Left Behind’” – ABC News
That’s nice.
Can the States get a Break from YesWeCan Care™ next?
Posted by: Noz | August 9, 2011, 9:27 am 9:27 am
“Despite what some among us would like to believe it is not because of our creative ideas. It is not because of the merit of our positions. It is not because we care about children and it is not because we have a vision of a great public school for every child. NEA and its affiliates are effective advocates because we have power.”
“And we have power because there are more than 3.2 million people who are willing to pay us hundreds of millions of dollars in dues each year, because they believe that we are the unions that can most effectively represent them, the unions that can protect their rights and advance their interests as education employees.”
“This is not to say that the concern of NEA and its affiliates with closing achievement gaps, reducing dropout rates, improving teacher quality and the like are unimportant or inappropriate. To the contrary. These are the goals that guide the work we do. But they need not and must not be achieved at the expense of due process, employee rights and collective bargaining. That simply is too high a price to pay.”
-National Education Association lawyer Bob Chanin, speaking at the NEA’s annual meeting in July, 2009
Posted by: Larry | August 9, 2011, 9:45 am 9:45 am
Duncan MAY HAVE taught once for his mom’s private school…unverified, was part of Obama’s “buddies” group in Chicago,,,,and in the early90′s was
chosen to run the Chicago Schools. See how you become one of Obama’s Enlightened Ones…..all you need is a decent hook shot on the basketball court.
Posted by: justj joey | August 9, 2011, 12:31 pm 12:31 pm
Bailout to teachers unions…
Posted by: HAHA | August 9, 2011, 4:55 pm 4:55 pm
If any parents are reading these comments want to improve their own kids school performance, limit the time they spend on watching t.v. and playing computer/video games.
The more they read, the better their vocabulary. Reading to them, one grade level higher than they can, makes wonderful sharing moments with them.
Posted by: Lydia | August 9, 2011, 5:50 pm 5:50 pm
Wouldn’t simply be easier to just eliminate the fat, bloated”thing” we call the Dept. of Education? We don’t need a Secretary who may or may not have ever taught kids at the helm, and a department which does little more than public relations for you know who. Get rid of it….leave the local taxpayers alone…..we can figure out how to educate our kids, how to pay for it, as local citizens have been doing it for a couple of centuries……the federal government is doing the “dumbing down”……not LOCAL districts……
Posted by: justj joey | August 10, 2011, 11:07 am 11:07 am