News Release

U.S. Education Dept. Validates NEA's Concerns, Proposes More Flexibility Under 'No Child Left Behind'

National Education Association Signals New Policy is a Step in Right Direction - But New "Growth Model" Proposal Leaves Out Far Too Many Children

WASHINGTON—After years of calls from the National Education Association (NEA) for more flexibility under the sweeping so-called No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law, the Department of Education announced today that it would grant a “growth model” policy in determining school progress labels.

Under the Department's proposed “growth model,” up to 10 states would be allowed to measure not only how well students are performing on the day standardized tests are administered, but also how that performance changes over a period of time.  The move by the Department validated NEA’s position that the current Adequate Yearly Progress model (AYP), which bases all school accountability decisions on just two test scores, needed to be fixed.

“Evaluating school progress based only on a ‘snapshot’ of two standardized test scores on any given day, while failing to measure individual student progress over time is a fundamentally flawed approach,” said NEA President Reg Weaver.  “Today the Department heeded to the calls of millions of educators for a ‘growth model’ that truly reflects the great progress we are making in the classroom.”

Approximately 11,000 public schools are already labeled as “failing” for not showing improvement on standardized test scores.  As a result, those same schools are in jeopardy of losing millions of dollars in federal funding.  It is estimated this list will grow by the thousands before the next school year begins.

“Unfortunately, the Department’s move does not go far enough because students in a maximum of 10 states will be able to benefit from this more reasonable and valid growth model, leaving students in classrooms in the rest of the country with the very same model the Department has identified as flawed,” Weaver added.  “We will continue to urge that broader flexibility be provided such as including multiple measures of student achievement beyond two high-stakes standardized test scores.”

Although today’s announcement is a welcomed change, federal funding for the law’s mandates continues to move in the wrong direction.  The current appropriations bill pending in Congress, although wisely rejected yesterday by the House, would cut NCLB funding by $750–$800 million.

“Even with the new ‘growth model’ in place, schools still need additional resources to provide the things we know improve student achievement such as: smaller class sizes, qualified teachers, individual attention, up-to-date textbooks, materials and technology as well as safe and orderly schools, adequate and equitable funding and an environment conducive to good teaching and learning,” said Weaver.
 
 
Nov. 21, 2005

CONTACT:
Staci Maiers   (202) 822-7150, smaiers@nea.org

# # #

The National Education Association is the nation's largest professional employee organization, representing 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, college faculty, school administrators, education support professionals, retired educator and students preparing to become teaches.