Every Student Succeeds Act
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The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is federal education legislation passed into law in 2015 that replaced the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Similar to NCLB, ESSA reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, which increased the federal government's involvement in education. In contrast to NCLB, ESSA reduced the authority of the U.S. Department of Education over state education systems by giving both states and school districts more power to determine their own testing standards, academic assessments, and intervention methods. The bill passed in the Senate by a vote of 85-12 and in the House of Representatives by a 359-64 vote. It was signed into law by former President Barack Obama (D) on December 10, 2015.[1][2]
Provisions
Testing
Under ESSA, the frequency of testing remains the same, but the testing details are determined by the states. Students must still be tested in math and language arts, once per year in grades three through eight and once in grades nine through 12. Additionally, students must be assessed in science at least once in grades three through five, once in grades six through nine, and once in grades 10 through 12. The tests may use several measures of student achievement and can "assess higher-order thinking skills and understanding, which may include measures of student growth and may be partially delivered in the form of portfolios, projects or extended performance tasks."[3] These assessments can also be administered through a single test or through multiple assessments during the year.
Accountability
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States must submit accountability plans ("ESSA plans") to the U.S. Department of Education.[4] These plans must be developed through consultation with governors, members of the state legislature, state boards of education, local education agencies, Indian tribes, teachers, principals, and parents.[3] These ESSA plans began in the 2017-2018 school year.
ESSA allows states to have more input than they did under NCLB over how much standardized tests count toward school ratings. States have the option to include factors besides these tests, such as graduation rates, English language proficiency, or access to advanced coursework.[5] Additionally, ESSA eliminates the requirement for schools to identify and document "highly qualified teachers." Previously, districts were required to employ only teachers who hold at least a bachelor's degree, are fully certified or licensed by the state, and demonstrate competence in each "core academic subject area" in which the teacher instructs.[6]
Interventions
States are required to establish a method of identifying schools in need of support and improvement. This includes the lowest-performing 5 percent of schools receiving Title 1 funding and high schools that do not graduate one-third or more of their students.[3] It is left to the states and districts to determine what form interventions will take in these cases. Schools with consistent struggles in these areas must be flagged, and their improvements must be monitored according to evidence-based goals. These schools are permitted to work primarily with districts, with the state stepping in only if measurable progress is not achieved.[5]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Every Student Succeeds Act. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- No Child Left Behind Act
- Common Core State Standards Initiative
- Public education in the United States
- School board elections portal
- Glossary of education terms
External links
- Full text of the law
- Summary of the Every Student Succeeds Act
- The Center for American Progress on implementing ESSA
- The Conservative Review: What Parents Need to Know About Congress’s Latest Education Law
Footnotes
- ↑ myAJC, "Senate retires No Child Left Behind, adopts Every Student Succeeds. Obama will sign tomorrow.," December 9, 2015
- ↑ 12 Action News, "Bill passed to make Common Core optional, support pre-K education," December 2, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 National Conference of State Legislatures, "Summary of the Every Student Succeeds Act, legislation reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act," accessed February 8, 2016
- ↑ Texas Association of School Boards, "Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA): Overview," accessed February 9, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Elisabeth Cervantes, Webinar with Education Week's Alison Klein and U.S. News and World Report's Lauren Camera, December 16, 2015
- ↑ State of Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, "Title II Part A-Teacher and Principal Quality," accessed February 9, 2016
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