The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) rolled back much of 2001’s landmark No Child Left Behind Act, shifting substantial power back to the states in the form of school accountability, teacher evaluation, school improvement, and many others. In response, Education Next has launched a two-part forum of eight experts weighing in on the new legislation.
In part two of the series, our Charles Barone is joined by Bill Jackson, Dane Linn, and Linda Darling-Hammond in discussing how we can best navigate this latest legislative update to ESEA.
The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) shifts a great deal of authority from the federal government to states and school districts. With this shift comes an unprecedented opportunity for states and localities to innovate with regard to student assessments, accountability systems, and interventions. This shift also, however, provides an opportunity for those who wish to whitewash school failure and to stonewall efforts to overhaul education policy through school turnarounds and systemic reforms. The challenges to innovate and to advance the best interests of students for Governors, state chiefs, elected officials, school leaders, and educators are formidable.
– Charles Barone
Read more at Education Next.