Secretary Spellings outlines NCLB proposals

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representative Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-CA), the senior Republican on the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee, Tuesday welcomed news that the U.S. Secretary of Education is proposing much-needed reforms to the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), but he expressed disappointment at Democratic leaders’ continued inability to enact a more comprehensive overhaul of the law.

“We have learned a great deal in the six years since NCLB was enacted. As policymakers, we have an obligation to take seriously those lessons and translate them into reforms,” said McKeon. “Unfortunately, more than a year into their congressional majority, Democrats have all but ignored the pressing need to revitalize this law that impacts our nation’s schools.”

In response to the law’s stalled reauthorization in Congress, the U.S. Secretary of Education Tuesday unveiled a series of regulatory proposals that address a number of the more pressing challenges that have been identified since NCLB was enacted. Those reforms, which track closely with the priorities identified by Republicans at the outset of the NCLB reform process more than a year ago, would:

• Allow all states to implement a growth model to measure individual student achievement over time;
• Require states to set a uniform and reliable graduation rate, and track graduation rates for low-income, minority, special education, and English language learning students – those students NCLB is intended to help;
• Clarify that states can use multiple assessments, instead of just one test, when determining student academic achievement;
• Provide more information to parents by requiring data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) on state and local report cards;
• Ensure students are appropriately included in the states’ accountability systems by requiring states to justify their ‘n’ size, which is used to determine whether to include a subgroup; and
• Strengthen the assistance given to schools that continue to fall short of expectations by ensuring that the schools implement rigorous and comprehensive interventions through their restructuring plans.

Among the most significant proposals outlined Tuesday, the Secretary’s plan would ensure the funds already required by law (20 percent of a district’s Title I allocation) are set aside and actually used to provide services to students. This would serve to improve public school choice and Supplemental Educational Services (SES), such as free tutoring, offered to children under NCLB. Schools would continue to have the option of returning unused funds to the general operating budget if they can demonstrate that parents have been actively engaged and made aware of their options.

The proposal would also increase monitoring of SES providers; allow school districts to use funds to increase outreach to parents of children who could benefit from SES; and make more information publicly available about SES and public school choice opportunities. Rep. McKeon proposed a similar package of reforms to expand parental options last year, with the Improving Supplemental Education by Ensuring Parental Awareness Act (H.R. 2203).

“Education leaders around the country recognize that despite NCLB’s early successes, the law is in need of fine-tuning,” said McKeon. “Washington must be responsive to the needs of our states and local communities, particularly when it comes to education reform. The regulatory reforms proposed today will make a real difference for students and schools, and I look forward to their swift implementation.”

“Although the Administration has been forced to fill the vacuum left by congressional inaction, I continue to stand ready to work with members on both sides of the aisle who remain committed to the vision of NCLB, based on the principles of accountability, flexibility, and parental choice,” added McKeon.