- REPRINT from TEA News Release
The U.S. Department of Education (USDE) has notified
the Texas Education Agency (TEA) that it will not grant
a waiver for specific provisions of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act (commonly known as the No
Child Left Behind Act of 2001) as it relates to House
Bill 866 (HB 866).
Had a waiver been secured from the federal
government, potential changes under HB 866 would
have included math assessments for certain students
in grades 3, 5 and 8; and reading in grades 3, 5 and
8. High-performing students would have been exempt
from taking these assessments in grades 4, 6, and
7.
Current federal law requires testing for math and
reading for all students in grades 3 through 8.
“Annual assessment of all students in grades 3 through
8 is critical to holding schools and LEAs [local education
agencies] accountable for improving the achievement
of all students and to providing transparency on
LEA, school, and student performance to families,
communities, and other stakeholders,” wrote Assistant
Secretary of Education Deborah S. Delisle in a Sept.
6th letter to Commissioner of Education Michael
Williams.
“Therefore, should the TEA submit such a
request, I would decline to exercise my authority to
grant a waiver of the provisions you have identified.”
In July, Commissioner Williams submitted a letter
to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan seeking
clarification from USDE whether specific federal
provisions related to student tests might be waived.
The authors of HB 866 (passed by the 83rd Texas
Legislature) recognized a federal waiver was necessary
before provisions of the legislation could be put into
effect.
In her letter to Commissioner Williams, Assistant
Secretary Delisle went on to say that HB 866 provisions
could also impact the state’s current request for
a general NCLB waiver. TEA submitted its original
application in February, updated its submission in
August and received a final decision on Sept 30.
The general NCLB waiver request for the State of
Texas is available for viewing on the TEA website.
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