An article in the May 18, 2011 edition of Education Week reported that, although some members of Congress are beginning to sketch out visions for aspects of reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the prospect for completing the job by President Obama’s September 2011 deadline remains “cloudy.” On May 21st the Associated Press reported that the Republican Chairman of the House Education and Welfare Committee recently stated that the deadline will be “impossible” to meet. According to Education Week, there is bipartisan agreement that the law is broken and reform is needed. The lawmakers agree that high school students need to be better prepared for college and careers, measures need to be created to improve teacher development and effectiveness, and federal involvement in education needs to be reduced, particularly with regard to turning around the lowest performing schools. However, defining the role of the federal government in school improvement and accountability remains a major point of dissension. The Republican members of the House are reportedly proposing a series of bills to separately address various matters, while the Senate is reportedly working on a single comprehensive bill.
As Congress continues to debate education reform through ESEA reauthorization, according to a May 23rd Education Week online article, individual state legislatures have pushed through their own reforms. One of the biggest areas of change at the state level has been the passage of controversial new laws to limit teachers’ collective bargaining rights and tie teachers’ tenure, advancement and pay to their performance, including their ability to improve student test scores. Other changes include the creation or expansion of charter schools, school voucher programs, student academic standards, and teacher qualifications.
PCG Education is well-positioned to support education reform efforts at state and local levels, including the development of comprehensive accountability systems to monitor preK-20 students’ academic achievement and teachers’ performance.
