Senators Snowe, Collins Introduce Legislation To Improve No Child Left Behind Act

SENATORS SNOWE, COLLINS INTRODUCE LEGISLATION TO IMPROVE NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT

Senators Olympia J. Snowe and Susan Collins today introduced the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Flexibility and Improvements Act. This bill reforms the No Child Left Behind Act, giving states, school districts, and schools greater control and flexibility in implementing and executing the No Child Left Behind law. This legislation builds on the major recommendations made by the Maine NCLB task force which was created by Senators Snowe and Collins in 2004.

"Our legislation would make important changes to provide greater local control and flexibility to Maine and other states in their No Child Left Behind implementation efforts. At the same time, our legislation stays true to the worthy goals of No Child Left Behind, such as increasing accountability, closing the achievement gap, and improving student performance," Senators Snowe and Collins said.

The task force provided recommendations the following areas: annual yearly progress and assessment; reading and limited English proficiency students; special education; highly qualified teachers; and funding. The Snowe-Collins legislation includes provisions that address concerns in each of these areas. The overarching purpose of the No Child Left Behind Flexibility and Improvements Act is to increase flexibility for states, school districts, and schools to address various implementation concerns.

Specifically, this bill includes a provision that will provide significant relief for teachers of multiple subjects in meeting highly qualified teacher requirements. It also gives teachers new options to make use of a "minor" in a subject and allows teachers to obtain a general state social-studies certificate. Current requirements may cause unintended difficulties for teachers in small and rural schools, who frequently are required to teach multiple academic subjects at the middle and secondary level due to small classes and smaller staffs.

It also allows states greater options in the design of systems to demonstrate student performance, such as growth models, where the same students are followed over time. In addition, the legislation requires the secretary to provide specific examples of how these models could be approved. This would give states practical assistance in the design of these systems.

This bill addresses concerns that some special education students are being required to take grade-level assessments that are inappropriate for them. This bill makes use of the more individualized treatment afforded these students under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to ensure that special education students are tested at the most appropriate level.

This legislation gives the Secretary of Education the ability to modify the 100 percent proficiency requirements for 2013-2014 pending the result of reviews conducted every three years. It also limits the identification of schools to those most in need of improvement. This will allow states to focus resources on the schools most in need of assistance to better improve student performance.

NCLB aims to increase education accountability for States, school districts, and schools, offer more flexibility for States and local districts in the use of federal education dollars, and support stronger reading programs, particularly for young children.

NCLB has also brought a substantial increase in federal funding for K-12 education. In 2001, prior to passage of NCLB, Maine received approximately $58 million in formula funding under the prior statute. In 2006, Maine received approximately $84 million in formula funding under NCLB programs.

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