No Child Left Behind one step closer to reform

Big changes could be in store for the No Child Left Behind law. Thursday the U.S Senate passed a bill aimed at reforming it.

The overhaul was approved by a 81-17 vote Thursday and now sets the stage for what could be contentious negotiations with the House over the federal government’s influence over education policy.

A week ago, the House passed its own update of the 2002 law that President George W. Bush pushed.

NCLB mandates annual testing in reading and math for students in grades 3 through 8 and again in high school. Schools had to show student growth or face consequences such as cuts in funding.

Critics complain there is too much testing, and the law is too hard on schools who test poorly. The U.S. House and Senate bills will leave the testing in place, but they take away the federal government’s power to punish failing schools.

Lawmakers have been waiting since 2007 to reform NCLB., but Washington was in gridlock between then and 2014.

In 2009, Atlanta public schools made news after a cheating scandal brought the law’s high stakes testing to light. In 2012, El Paso made news as the area’s largest school district leadership inflated scores in return for taxpayer-funded bonuses.

Now in 2015, both the Republican-led House and Senate are working to reform the education law. There are some differences between the bills but both agree: standardized testing will stay. They also agree that instead of the federal government making the rules, state and local governments will. They will decide how to tie test scores to schools and teachers. This could mean poor testing doesn’t translate to a cut in funding.

Rep. Will Hurd, (R-District 23) voted in favor of the House version. Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-District16) voted against it. He said that by eliminating federal requirements, the bill prevents under-performing schools from working with the government to develop action plans that will improve student success.

EPISD Superintendent Juan Cabrera has mixed feelings, writing: “The proposed changes that would remove rigid and punitive provisions tied to testing results are a positive move…. While lessening the school systems’ reliance on state and federal assessments is critical… The bill needs a more effective link between accountability and improvement measures for Title I schools and at-risk students.”

Both the House and Senate now must find a compromise before it can go to President Obama’s desk.