An editorial in the Los Angeles Times (10/3) describes an impasse between California education officials and ED regarding the state's application for a No Child Left Behind waiver over a "small provision" of the waiver plan mandating that to qualify, states must "make standardized tests count in teachers' performance evaluations, a hot-button issue that has been vehemently opposed by teachers unions in California." The Times notes that California Superintendent Tom Torlakson is "far from committed to the concept," while the Administration "has been overly determined to prod states into using test scores in teacher evaluations," with this practice being a factor in "Education Secretary Arne Duncan's Race to the Top - a grants competition that California never got fully on board with." The piece concludes, "it makes more sense for Duncan to back off from this mandate than to see California left without a waiver."
Paper: California Should Seek Waiver.The Contra Costa (CA) Times (10/3) reports that much criticism of NCLB is "justified," given its "impossible goal" of 100% proficiency. Many California schools are on track to miss AYP targets, the Times notes, and "the tests are not broad-based. They don't give sufficient attention to the arts, music or social studies." The piece urges state leaders to apply for a waiver, and calls on them to accede to ED's requirement that teachers be evaluated in part based on student performance.
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