Education

How 11 Words Could Dramatically Change Proficiency Goal

March 16, 2009 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Back in 2007, the House education committee’s “discussion” draft for NCLB reauthorization bill came under fire from many sides. TheNEA’s opposition to potential pay-for-performance programs drew most of the attention.

Barely noticed and hardly debated, though, were minor addition to NCLB’s goal for student achievement. The current law requires states to track whether students are on pace to be proficient by the 2013-14 school year. The discussion draft for Title I would have added one important 11-word phrase: “or be on trajectory to meet or exceed [proficiency] within 3 years.”

I point this out as a follow-up to Friday’s post on growth models. Throughout his report for Education Sector, Charles Barone judges Tennessee’s growth model based on the goal in the current law. But it’s important to note that the most comprehensive proposal to reauthorize NCLB included the same type of statistical measures as Tennessee’s growth models. The draft would have made proficiency a “moving target” (to use Barone’s words from his report on Tennessee).

Barone’s criticism of the Tennessee model stands today. But the inclusion of 11 words in a reauthorized law might lead him to write a new report—one that looks at the impact of a three-year trajectory in all 50 states.

A version of this news article first appeared in the NCLB: Act II blog.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Classroom Technology Webinar
How to Leverage Virtual Learning: Preparing Students for the Future
Hear from an expert panel how best to leverage virtual learning in your district to achieve your goals.
Content provided by Class
English-Language Learners Webinar AI and English Learners: What Teachers Need to Know
Explore the role of AI in multilingual education and its potential limitations.
Education Webinar The K-12 Leader: Data and Insights Every Marketer Needs to Know
Which topics are capturing the attention of district and school leaders? Discover how to align your content with the topics your target audience cares about most. 

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: September 20, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education From Our Research Center What's on the Minds of Educators, in Charts
Politics, gender equity, and technology—how teachers and administrators say these issues are affecting the field.
1 min read
Stylized illustration of a pie chart
Traci Daberko for Education Week
Education Briefly Stated: August 30, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: August 23, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read