Mercedes Schneider is one of the few people who have read all (or almost all) of the 1,000 page plus behemoth that is the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015. Her latest post provides valuable new information. This legislation was passed out of the Senate-House conference committee and is likely to move swiftly for full approval by both houses in the next few days or weeks. ESSA would replace No Child Left Behind, which should have been reauthorized eight years ago. It also kills off Race to the Top by stripping the Secretary of any power to impose his ideas about how to reform schools on districts and states.
The big change is the reduction in the role of the federal Department of Education (ED). This is the first big downsizing of the federal role since the original Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 was passed. There are strict limitations on the power of the Secretary to meddle in state or local education matters. The shrinking of the federal role is Arne Duncan’s legacy.
Mercedes points out that the law is still mired in the testing-and-accountability mindset but oversight and responsibility shifts is from the federal ED to local and state governments. She says the bill is “test-centric.”
But there are some very good things in the bill. It puts an end to the hated No Child Left Behind and the failed Race to the Top. The bill eliminates AYP and Duncan’s waivers. States can drop out of Common Core without any penalty. No more teacher evaluation by test scores unless the states want to do it. Bill Gates will no longer have the Department of Education mandating his latest ideas. No more federal mandates about how to reform schools.
I know that many readers would like the law to go farther. I would like to see an end to annual testing, a practice unknown in the high-performing nations of the world. I would like to see stipulations about charter accountability and transparency. But that’s not there.
Nonetheless, I support the bill because it gets rid of a terrible, failed law and a terrible, failed program. The Bush-Obama era is over. Now the fight for a humane education system shifts to the states. In some states, that may seem like a herculean task. But the fact is that parents and educators have a greater chance of being heard by their state legislators than by the White House and Congress.
So what next? Organize, mobilize, agitate, wake the town and tell the people. Stop the privatization of public schools. Stop the testing madness. Join with organizations in your state and community that are fighting to transform the schools to places where learning, character, ethics, imagination, creativity, citizenship, and kindness are valued. Join the Network for Public Education. Find out how to make alliances with people who share your values. We have a long way to go. The time to start is now.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Diane, one other thing that the bill left out is truth in GPAs. John Butcher and I came along a great report out of Arkansas which exposes grade inflation – see links on far right (you can read a summary about it on my Facebook page here). It requires a comparison of classroom grades to the percentage of students who pass the statewide tests. When lots of kids get A’s and B’s in class but then fail the test, well, we know those teachers are up to no good again.
Can’t imagine Virginia or any of the deceptive states following Arkansas’ lead but maybe some of your readers might be interested. I realize you probably think the comparison between objective measurements and a teacher’s whim should be banned from the face of the earth. But hey, some of us actually believe we should know whether our kids are actually learning anything at all during those 7 hours in school each day.
So now classroom grades are also to be determined by standardized test scores?
My son’s (great) math teacher gives points for effort- hard work. Should he abandon the measure that comes from knowing and observing the children in his class and just parrot their standardized test score?
Why give them grades at all? We’ll just reduce these children to one annual standardized test score and call it a day.
Now you understand why colleges must take GPAs with a grain of salt. Many teachers and schools hold students to standards. There was even a case in my district in which the teachers complained because a principal was forcing them to lower standards and give out easy A’s (go figure how that turned out… a lawyer who committed perjury in court was hired to interview the teachers and “determined” that the principal was completely “right”). But some do not. See Arkansas’ list of schools were 50% of the kids got an “A” or “B” in the class but failed the state test. How does that work?!
So let’s take your suggestion to its logical conclusion. You want grades to be given out on “effort”. Or maybe let’s say if a kids fails 3 days in a row and then gets it correct on day 4, he gets full credit. Never mind if he can’t recall it one day later, he still keeps full credit. You really want colleges to accept GPAs based on “effort” or a single instance of competence without any verification of retained learning? Is that really your position?
At the aggregate level, a single test is fine. Lord knows you all would howl if we forced kids to take tests on 5 days spaced throughout the year. For an individual kid, a single sample is not sufficient. We can use computer-based learning/quizzes throughout the year to get a better understanding. But there must be some objective standard to which we compare classroom grades. If you are here to tell me that every teacher grades consistently internally and externally compared to other teachers, we might as well just stop right now.
P.S. As for those who say GPAs are “more reliable” than SATs, you are just wrong. There are biases in those reports. Students self-select both the difficulty of the college and major. It’s the same as one teacher getting assigned all the difficult kids and then measuring her performance on the average scores (not the student progress relative to similar kids but just the average score of her kids). Kids who get poor SATs end up majoring in liberal arts majors where A’s are given out like popcorn. Some may have started in a STEM major but quickly decide they would rather not fail out. Those studies aren’t worth the paper they are printed on.
Virginia, your contempt for liberal arts majors is contemptible and arrogant. I am a liberal arts major, as are most graduates of selective colleges. I think my degree is quite valuable.
Diane. Let’s try this.
All professional soccer players played at the rec league level.
Rec leagues hand out trophies for “participation”.
Does that mean professional soccer players didn’t work hard or were horrible soccer players when they played in rec league? Of course not!
Nobody is saying liberal arts classes cannot be difficult. Nobody is saying liberal arts majors can’t be incredibly intelligent. All we are saying is when 80%+ of the students get A’s and B’s (and likely 60%+ get A’s), there is no rigor to those grades. There is no way to determine whether a student put in the effort and is well-educated or whether they got a “gift” from their professor. Sounds like Ohio employers have the same issue with diplomas in that state.
There is grade inflation in STEM majors and schools, just not as much. One can’t tell whether a given liberal arts major is better educated than a STEM major, but one can have much more confidence that the STEM major’s grades are reliable. I would prefer if both sets of grades were more reliable. Ultimately students who pay tuition in college will have to demand it (unlikely). However, in high school, the citizens who are paying for public education get a say in the matter if they are so inclined. At least some did in Arkansas. Hats off to them.
Virginia, you are fixated on what doesn’t matter. Would you like to deny high school diplomas to 70% of seniors because they are not as smart as you?
Diane, the Common Core proficiency levels are based on students continuing on to college. While only about 1/3 may be ready for college, that is certainly not an appropriate number to receive high school diplomas. It has historically been 90%+ of those who remained in school through age 18. I am not aware of anyone who is suggesting using “proficient” on SBAC/PARCC as a graduation requirement.
Grade inflation, just like “participation” trophies, are a real problem. Students are not forced to work for delayed gratification. Students are told they are “experts” when they are not. Proficiency and certainly mastery require real work and effort. It is very reasonable to normalize grading standards both as a fairness issue (students in one high school don’t get an easier system than those in another high school) and as a standards issue (to ensure the diplomas have meaning).
[And note, I have never claimed to be intelligent (“as smart as you”).]
Virginia, why confuse the Common Core with college admissions tests? Why do you assert that the Common Core tests will not be used for promotion or graduation? How do you know that?
Diane, let me see….
1. As you have stated in previous columns, the SAT is being transformed from a quasi-IQ test to an achievement test based on CC. Thus, CC is becoming the basis of college admissions tests in effect.
2. Name one state where a student has to pass a CC test to be promoted to the next grade. Just a single one.
3. Name one state where CC tests (at the “proficient” level) are required for graduation. Just a single one.
I seem to recall one person on here specifically chastising others about how no other country tests every year. But that person can’t possibly know what will happen in the future. Seems ironic for you to base an argument on what might happen.
Virginia, the SAT was created by Carl C. Brigham, one of the designers of IQ tests and a devout believer that IQ was innate, fixed, inherited, and tied to race, ethnicity and blood lines (eg, Alpines and Nordics). In his view, Northern Europeans were genetically superior to Southern Europeans. He created the SAT for the College Board as a battery of multiple choice questions, which would be cheaper and faster to score than the traditional College Boards. The Boards consisted of questions written and graded by teachers. Students had to write essay answers or solve math and science problems and show how they reached the answer. The SAT replaced the College Boards on December 7, 1941, when the college presidents learned about Pearl Harbor while meeting at Princeton, realized we were entering a world war, and decided that a faster, shorter test was needed.
As to Common Core, the tests just started in the last two years. We don’t know yet whether states will use them for promotion or graduation. If not, what purpose do they serve?
Now, Diane, you have answered your own question before. Common Core tests are designed to:
1. determine how well kids are learning the material
– We need to understand what % of students are well-prepared for college. Not all will be (or can ever be), but it’s used as a reliable benchmark
– It can also be used to evaluate various policies (direct instruction vs project-based learning, tracking vs “inclusion”, etc.)
2. determine the effectiveness of the principal and teachers
– This must be accomplished via student growth as opposed to average scores since the kids/circumstances are different in each case
– Allows us to stop ineffective teachers from literally taking future income from the pockets of disadvantaged youth and placing it in their own paychecks.
In light of your prior posts, it’s almost a silly question.
Yes, it is true that the CC tests may be used as a graduation requirement. But it’s almost certain that full “proficiency” would not be required for a high school diploma. “Proficiency” is geared toward college-level work. A more basic achievement level would suffice for graduation. You may say that I can’t point to states using the tests this way or prove they won’t be used in XYZ in the future. I can merely respond that you can’t prove otherwise. We don’t ban Zoloft and Prozac simply because if used during pregnancy, it can cause deformations in babies?
Virginia, your logic is flawed. No drug is allowed into the marketplace without thorough testing of its effects. When it is allowed, it is not then forced on people who don’t want it. Zoloft and Prozac have been extensively tested. They come with warnings of risks. No one is required to take either drug against their will.
Grade inflation is a real problem –in K-12, but also at Harvard. This is fraud and it bothers me. However most of the cures I’ve heard about are worse than the disease. It seems to me that an alert parent can tell if his kid is learning much by talking to his kid.
Agreed. But what about:
1. Parent who did not attend college and may not be able to accurately assess the child
2. Comparing grades between teachers and/or schools for class rankings, etc.
3. Colleges trying to admit students based on GPAs
That was the whole purpose of the SAT. To compare via an objective test.
Speaking of Harvard, you have no idea how badly those are inflated (lots of hard-working and intelligent students there of course). I’d definitely support asking colleges that receive federal aid to provide a distribution of grades by major/department. I’ve seen some data and it wasn’t pretty.
The SAT was created by the designer of the IQ test, Carl C. Brigham. He wrote a racist book about how the tests showed which racial and ethnic groups were superior, which were inferior. The SAT has a sordid history.
Not sure that portraying new tests (based on new standards based on the notion that every child is meant to perform at top student level all created at a time when it was abundantly clear that policymakers and the job market were unwilling and/or unable to provide the return on such a mindset and/or investment…) should be the standard bearer for the truth of what we need from our public schools.
Such a mechanical and digital view of children might be okay for the children of investment bankers, the well-to-do who measure their access to Harvard with GPAs and last names (if their GPAs won’t cut it)…
but for a growing number of citizens failed and further suppressed by the market’s “if your data isn’t good enough, according to our formula, then you have failed US”…there are other very important outcomes of a public education.
Preparation for the world that is, and empowerment to make it the world they want are more important outcomes than test scores.
Sometimes simply providing sanctuary from the lives they lead outside of the school, and hopefully guide them away from a similar outcome. It’s great for those secluded and safe enough to pretend there is some valid little data nugget that can be plugged into the program to allow judgement of those serving the most challenging-or allow judgement, period.
But hey, maybe 7 hours of test prep is what other parents are looking to hold their teachers accountable for.
The Social Impact Bonds are a license to steal from SPED & puts Wall St in a position to decide SPEd $. Congress is about to legalize a fraud model that hurts SPEd kids & eventually diminishes services for the most disabled.
Second, the law precludes universities from setting education standards. That opens the doors for ANYONE or thing to set educational or professional standards. in 10 years teachers will be trained at Walmart.
There is no way this is a good law & I’m disgusted that both Teacher’s Unions are supporting it.
Last week Elizabeth Warren told the national press club that the D’s & R’s were proud of their ESEA bipartisan agreement
Obama wants a “clean” bill so he & the Dems can run around bragging about the glories of bipartisanship.
They can put a good face on it, but the fact is under our system it’s a huge loss of influence for “liberal” ed reformers.
Democrats control so few states they’ll be all but irrelevant on education outside of DC. The vast majority of people will get a very-very conservative version of ed reform because conservatives don’t need the Democratic or liberal ed reformers anymore.
Democrats abandoned public education to sign onto this “movement” and now they’ll find themselves mostly irrelevant. They deserve it IMO, but one would think with all the big bucks strategists they hire they could have seen it coming.
According to Gary Orfield the ESEA is rife with potential abuse for corporations to plunder the public trust. Only now the plundering would be in the hands of the states, most of whom no concept of accountability.http://www.schoolsmatter.info/2015/12/ecaa-would-set-country-back-more-than.html
It’s laughable that people like Elizabeth Warren call themselves Democrats — and even more laughable that people who call themselves Democrats believe it.
SomeDAM poet : “people like Elizabeth Warren”? Explain…I clearly haven’t gotten the scoop.
Elizabeth Warren was one of the primary sponsors of an amendment to the ESSA bill that would have continued the worst policies of NCLB. see here
It’s a strange situation when the Republicans act more like traditional Democrats than many of the Democrats do.
I think it’s hard to celebrate if you live in an ed reform-dominated state like mine. A lot of state legislators are part-time and mine seem to only consult “experts” who push this dogma. Ohio state lawmakers once held a hearing on ed where 14 of the 15 people testifying were tied to StudentsFirst. Lawmakers are (literally) cheaper to buy too, at the state level.
School-level politics is worthwhile though and it doesn’t seem to be dominated by the pros. The best campaign I was ever involved in was a local effort to replace state funding our schools lost under our “reform” state government. We had to convince people to raise their own property taxes to keep the schools running. Amazingly, they did, even though this is a middle/working class district and our voters haven’t seen an increase in wages- “take home”- for a decade. They’re not the only ones either. 85% of Ohio public school levies passed in the last election, so there IS public support for public schools which is heartening given the really negative (national) “reform” narrative around public schools.
WRONG HYPERLINK!!!!!!! (It goes to the LA Charter school PAC!)
Ecstatic that the door to the henhouse was closed so the fox couldn’t come in to destroy public education! Not ecstatic that the back door the henhouse is now open for the fox to come in anyway through state governments to ruin public ed. Shaking my head that people support this bill. Like our very own Clayton Williams here in Texas said, “If it’s inevitable, then just lie down and enjoy it.”
“Highly-qualified” becomes history…
This bill hurts the Opt Out movement. It allows corporations more and easier access. It still allows massive data collection. It lures states into staying hooked to the CC programs. The bill crushes rights of Special Education students.
I’m sorry, I don’t see this as an improvement. It will take five years to activate and mobilize enough to make a difference. How many thousands of kids do we lose in the process?
Call Washington and ask your Representative to vote NO on the NCLB reauthorization.
202-224-3121
It seems my fears of a bill designed to outflank the opposition to all things deform have become reality. Notwithstanding the stupidity and horrors of this bill and its predecessors, the one advantage of having a single, centralized enemy was that we did not see our efforts being Balkanized the way they will doubtless be in the future. The empty irony here is that those “market forces”, the non existent invisible hand will be powerless in the face of a corrupted political system that answers to the influence of money and backroom deals rather than the well informed citizenry who are active in education policy and their votes in support of politicians who follow their lead. There were already considerable problems at the state level before the ESSA, now, considering the severe levels of corruption and the almost complete lack of integrity in all 50 states, the battle just got longer and harder. http://www.publicintegrity.org/2015/11/09/18693/only-three-states-score-higher-d-state-integrity-investigation-11-flunk
I hope somebody looks at what is happening in Palo Alto, CA (despite 50% students opted out of the state tests last year).
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/12/the-silicon-valley-suicides/413140/
Kids are already too much under pressure. Many parents don’t realize it because they believe the school is dealing with all the problems. The career-busy parents often drink Common Core Kool-Aid and find out too late that the kids were not able to manage the pressure. The district is working hard to fix the problem. They have lots of researchers and mental heath specialists on the issue but mysteriously the problem remains.
100 kids get hospitalized every year only at Gunn school for suicide related thoughts, but the treatment helps only some.
Compassion to this situation anyone? It is sickening.
The suicides do not happen in Palo Alto alone, on the other side of the Bay – at Mission school district in Fremont, CA they are happening too. The bar is raised too high I think…