WASHINGTON — Those federally mandated math and reading tests will continue, but a sweeping rewrite of the nation’s education law will now give states — not the U.S. government — authority to decide how to use the results in evaluating teachers and schools.
The Senate on Wednesday voted overwhelmingly, 85-12, to approve legislation rewriting the landmark No Child Left Behind education law of 2002. On Thursday, President Barack Obama will sign it into law.
How it affects those involved:
TEACHERS: The legislation eliminates the federal mandate that teacher evaluations be tied to student performance on the statewide tests. States and districts will still be able to link scores or consider them as a factor in teacher-performance reviews, but they will not be required to do so.
STUDENTS: Public school students will still have to take the federally mandated statewide reading and math exams in grades 3-8 and once in high school — so parents, teachers and others can see how they are doing against a common measuring stick. But the legislation encourages states to set caps on the time students spend on testing.
SCHOOLS: The federal government may not mandate or give states incentives to adopt or maintain any particular set of academic standards, such as Common Core.
PARENTS: The bill provides for more transparency about test scores, meaning parents and others will get a better look at how students in their states and in local schools are doing.
Also, test scores will be broken down by race, family income and disability status.
