On July 19, 2013, the House passed H.R. 5, the Student Success Act. The measure is intended to overhaul the No Child Left Behind law (P.L. 107-110) which expired in 2007, and reduce the federal government's role in the public education system.
The bill would:
- · Eliminate the current accountability system, which requires all students to be 100 percent proficient in reading and math for their grade level by 2014. It would instead allow states to develop their own academic standards in reading, math and science and leave to their discretion whether to set standards for other subjects;
- Allow states to identify their poorest-performing schools and let local districts develop their own strategies for improving those schools;
- Consolidate several K-12 education programs into a new Local Academic Flexible Grant, which would allow states and school districts to support their own priorities. Also, it allows states to use Title II funds, currently provided for teacher development, to assist teachers in meeting the needs of students with different learning styles, particularly English learners, gifted students and students with disabilities;
- Require states and school districts to create teacher and principal evaluation systems based on several parameters, including student achievement and teacher performance; and
- Allow federal monies to follow a student if s/he changes public schools, including charter schools.
The Senate is working on an alternative to the House-passed bill. President Obama has announced that he would veto the House bill because it sharply reduces federal authority to set education standards, and allows the states too much power in determining how to spend federal education funding.
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