Assesstment
Sender: owner-edequity@mail.edc.org
Precedence: bulk
Reply-To: edequity@mail.edc.org
Dear Listserv members:
Many of you have already read the agreement reached with President's Bush
Educational Reform Agenda, which is enclosed within this document. Which
leads to a question about our discussion on assessment/testing and gender
equity. Does this reform change our thinking about the current dialogue
that we are having? and what possible strategies are needed to complement
this reform based on your knowledge of assessment/testing and equity? Your
thoughts and suggestion would be appreciated.
Hilandia
EdEquity Moderator
edequity-admin@mail.edc.org
*******************************************************************
Agreement Reached on President's Education Reform Legislation
YESTERDAY, THE HOUSE-SENATE conference committee agreed on a
final version of President Bush's education reform bill, the
"No Child Left Behind Act."
"I congratulate the members of the committee & their
leadership on reaching an agreement that will offer all of
America's students a quality education," Secretary Paige
said. "I look forward to the final vote on our 'No Child
Left Behind' bill, & on behalf of America's students, I urge
the members of the House & Senate to take those next steps
as soon as possible."
Below is a fact sheet describing major provisions of the
Conference Report issued by the conference committee.
The fact sheet & the Secretary's full statement are at
http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/12-2001/12112001b.html.
================================================================
House-Senate Education Conference Report: "No Child Left Behind"
U.S. Department of Education, December 11, 2001
================================================================
President Bush has made education his number-one domestic
priority. On Jan. 23, 2001, he sent his "No Child Left Behind"
plan for comprehensive education reform to Congress. At that
time, he asked members of Congress to engage in an active
bipartisan debate on how we can use the federal role in education
to close the achievement gap between disadvantaged & minority
students & their peers. The agreements reached by the members of
the House-Senate conference committee on education reform are a
result of that process & they embody each of the four basic
principles of President George W. Bush's education reform plan:
stronger accountability for results, expanded flexibility & local
control, expanded options for parents, & an emphasis on teaching
methods that have been proven to work.
The agreements will result in fundamental reforms in classrooms
throughout America. This is the most sweeping reform of the
Elementary & Secondary Education Act (ESEA) since it was enacted
in 1965, & it will redefine the federal role in K-12 education so
it can be used to improve the academic achievement of all
American students.
The following are some of the major provisions of the Conference
Report to H.R. 1, the "No Child Left Behind Act."
--------------------------
Accountability for Results
--------------------------
H.R. 1 will result in the creation of standards in each
state for what a child should know & learn in reading & math
in grades 3-8. Student progress & achievement will be
measured according to tests based upon those state standards
& given to every child, every year.
H.R. 1 will empower parents, citizens, educators,
administrators & policymakers with data from those annual
assessments. The data will be available in annual report
cards on school performance & on statewide progress. They
will give parents information about the quality of their
children's schools, the qualifications of teachers, & their
children's progress in key subjects.
Statewide reports will include performance data
disaggregated according to race, gender, & other criteria to
demonstrate not only how well students are achieving overall
but also progress in closing the achievement gap between
disadvantaged students & other groups of students.
-----------------------------------------------
Creating Flexibility at the State & Local Level
& Reducing Red Tape
-----------------------------------------------
To cut down on federal red tape & bureaucracy & enhance
local control, H.R. 1 will reduce the overall number of ESEA
programs at the U.S. Department of Education from 55 to 45.
For the first time, H.R. 1 will offer every local school
district in America the freedom to transfer up to 50 percent
of the federal dollars it receives among several education
programs without separate approval.
For the first time, all 50 states will also have the freedom
to transfer up to 50 percent of the non-Title I state
activity funds they receive from the federal government
among an assortment of ESEA programs without advance
approval.
H.R. 1 will allow the creation of up to 150 local
flexibility demonstration projects for school districts
interested in entering into an accountability agreement
based upon improved student achievement with the U.S.
Department of Education in exchange for a waiver of several
federal education rules.
Seven states will have new flexibility in the use of their
non-Title I federal funds in a variety of categories in the
form of waivers from federal requirements relating to a
variety of ESEA programs. States participating in the new
demonstration projects will also be able to coordinate their
efforts with local school districts through state-local
"flexibility partnerships" designed to make sure federal
education funds are being used effectively to meet student
needs.
H.R. 1 will give local school officials serving rural
schools & districts more flexibility & a greater say in how
federal funds are used in their schools.
------------------------------------------
Expanding Options for Parents
of Children from Disadvantaged Backgrounds
------------------------------------------
H.R. 1 creates meaningful options for parents whose children
are trapped in failing schools & makes these options
available immediately:
> Public School Choice: Parents with children in failing
schools would be allowed to transfer their child to a
better-performing public or charter school immediately after
a school is identified as failing.
> Supplemental Services: Federal Title I funds
(approximately $500 to $1,000 per child) can be used to
provide supplemental educational services -- including
tutoring, after school services, & summer school programs --
for children in failing schools.
> Charter Schools: H.R. 1 expands federal support for
charter schools by giving parents, educators & interested
community leaders greater opportunities to create new
charter schools.
------------------------------------------------
Ensuring Every Child Can Read with Reading First
------------------------------------------------
H.R. 1 increases federal funding for reading from $300
million in FY 2001 to more than $900 in FY 2002 & links that
funding to scientifically proven methods of reading
instruction through the President's Reading First plan.
-----------------------------
Strengthening Teacher Quality
-----------------------------
H.R. 1 asks states to put a highly-qualified teacher in
every public school classroom by 2005. The bill also makes
it easier for local schools to recruit & retain excellent
teachers.
H.R. 1 will consolidate smaller programs within the U.S.
Department of Education. The bill also creates a new
Teacher Quality Program that allows greater flexibility for
local school districts.
In addition to specific funds for teacher quality, H.R. 1
will also give local schools new freedom to make spending
decisions with up to 50 percent of the non-Title I federal
funds they receive. With this new freedom, a local school
district can use additional funds for hiring new teachers,
increasing teacher pay, improving teacher training &
development or other uses.
-------------------
Confirming Progress
-------------------
Under H.R. 1 a small sample of students in each state will
participate in the fourth- & eighth-grade National
Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in reading & math
every other year in order to help the U.S. Department of
Education verify the results of statewide assessments
required under Title I to demonstrate student performance &
progress.
-----------------------------
Promoting English Proficiency
-----------------------------
H.R. 1 consolidates the U.S. Department of Education's
bilingual & immigrant education programs in order to reduce
federal bureaucracy. The new federal program will focus on
helping limited English proficient (LEP) students learn
English through scientifically based teaching methods.
Under H.R. 1, LEP students will be tested for reading &
language arts in English after they have attended school in
the United States for three consecutive years.
Under H.R. 1 parents will be notified that their child
demonstrates limited English proficiency & is in need of
English language instruction.
===========================================================
To subscribe to (or unsubscribe from) EDInfo, address an
email message to: listproc@inet.ed.gov Then write either
SUBSCRIBE EDINFO YOURFIRSTNAME YOURLASTNAME in the message,
or write UNSUBSCRIBE EDINFO (if you have a signature block,
please turn it off) Then send it!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Past EDInfo messages: http://www.ed.gov/MailingLists/EDInfo/
Search: http://www.ed.gov/MailingLists/EDInfo/search.html
Past ED Initiatives: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/EDInitiatives/
===========================================================
Kirk Winters
U.S. Department of Education
kirk.winters@ed.gov
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.2 : Fri Apr 12 2002 - 15:16:56 EDT