Teaching Profession

Kansas, Oregon, Washington Waivers at ‘High Risk’

By Michele McNeil — August 20, 2013 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The U.S. Department of Education is threatening to revoke No Child Left Behind Act waivers for three states at the end of the 2013-14 school year over their failure to come up with new teacher-evaluation systems tied to student growth.

Kansas, Oregon, and Washington have been placed on “high risk” status and given one more year to get their teacher-evaluation systems on track. Specifically, each of those states is struggling with incorporating student academic growth into teacher ratings.

This is the first enforcement action federal officials have taken since the initial waivers were issued early last year. Forty states and the District of Columbia have waivers from NCLB provisions, as does a group of eight California districts. (“Districts’ Leeway Shatters Mold,” this issue.)

In letters sent to the three states Aug. 15, the Education Department spelled out more conditions they must meet during the coming school year to keep their waivers. Mostly, federal officials want to see evidence that the states are trying to meet their teacher-evaluation deadlines. The ultimate penalty for each state is losing its waiver and being forced back under the NCLB law as written.

The Obama administration’s NCLB waivers—an answer to the failure of Congress to rewrite the law—require that states implement teacher-evaluation systems that incorporate student growth as a significant factor, all on an aggressive federal timeline.

States must get their systems approved by the department during the first year of their waivers. The new systems then must be implemented statewide by 2014-15 and used to inform personnel decisions in 2015-16 (or, with an additional waiver, in 2016-17).

While Washington state’s evaluation system is in state law, that law also leaves it up to individual districts to decide whether to include test scores in teacher ratings. Federal requirements don’t allow such district discretion, so the state will have to secure a change in its law. That’s not likely to be easy, given the contentiousness of teacher-evaluation debates across the country.

Still, Washington state officials say they are committed to changing the law.

A version of this article appeared in the August 21, 2013 edition of Education Week as Three Waiver States On ‘High Risk’ List

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.

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

Teaching Profession The State of Teaching 'You Don't Know Teacher Tired': Educators Sound Off on Misconceptions
Hear what teachers featured in EdWeek's The State of Teaching Project say makes their jobs more difficult.
Frank Rivera teaches 7th grade ELA at Chaparral Star Academy in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 15, 2023.
Frank Rivera teaches 7th grade ELA at Chaparral Star Academy in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 15, 2023.
Montinique Monroe for Education Week
Teaching Profession Opinion Why I’m Happy Being ‘Just a Teacher’
Not every teacher is an aspiring administrator. That’s a good thing.
Amanda Myers
3 min read
Abstract vector illustration depicting the process of teaching and learning.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Teaching Profession What the Research Says Do Teachers Really Earn More After Leaving the Classroom? Not Necessarily
Nearly a decade after leaving a big urban district, many teachers have yet to recoup income, a study finds.
4 min read
Illustration of woman and steps made of cash.
Getty
Teaching Profession The State of Teaching Here's What Keeps Teachers on the Job
Hear why these teachers stay in the job, despite its challenges and lower pay.
Fourth graders do a warm up dance at the beginning of Helen Chan's math class at South Loop Elementary School on November 15, 2023, in Chicago.
Fourth graders do a warm-up dance at the beginning of Helen Chan's math class at South Loop Elementary School on Nov. 15, 2023, in Chicago.
Jamie Kelter Davis for Education Week