Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Education Law Blogs -> BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog

Education Law

: BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog

The road to 100% gets steeper for some states

Like a balloon payment mortgage, many states chose to pay more later than sooner when it comes to meeting NCLB?s 100 percent proficiency goal. The Center on Education Policy reports that 23 states have set their AYP bars for reading and math relatively low early on and are having to make significant annual gains in later years. This practice is known as ?backloading.? These states will have to meet much higher AYP bars starting right about . . . now. For example, starting in 2007-08, California will have to make steep gains in goals of at least 10 percentage points each year until 2013-2014 ? NCLB?s deadline for proficiency, according to the CEP report. It also means that more schools are expected to be identified for missing AYP and improvement in these states from now on. ?We are going to tap out the resources states have to serve schools, especially if we?re identifying so many, ?said Ellen Forte, an education consultants with states, in this Associated Press story. While these states have put themselves in this situation by not setting the bars higher early on, it also begs the questions of whether the law?s 100 percent proficiency goal is workable; and whether this goal has become a disincentive for states to raise student achievement. Jack Jennings, president of CEP, sums up the situation best in the AP article: ?This problem cannot be solved by states alone. Congressional leaders must provide some assistance in the reauthorization of the law to help create a more reasonable and workable solution.?

Full post as published by BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog on May 20, 2008 (boomark / email).