Re: [arn2-strategy] Report: No Senate Action on NCLB Reauthorization in 2007

[monty@fairtest.org]

Kennedy conceded what had become pretty obvious to observers - there  
was no way he could get the bill debated on the floor of the Senate  
this calendar year.

However, it does not mean he will not try to push a bill through  
committee this year. It will be vital for all of us united to  
overhauling NCLB along the line of the Joint Statement to stay active  
and united, keep pressuring Congress.

Forum on Ed Accountability has a new letter to Congress going out by  
fax today - I'll post it to the lists and it will be on FEA and  
FairTest websites also today.

Monty


Quoting Bob Schaeffer <bobschaeffer@earthlink.net>:

> Thanks to Jan Resseger for a "heads up" about this national wire
> service story which was buried by major media over the weekend:
>
> SENATE NOT CONSIDERING NEW EDUCATION LAW
> Associated Press -- November 2, 2007
> by Nancy Zuckerbrod
>
> Washington -- The top two lawmakers on the Senate Education Committee
> are putting off consideration of a new No Child Left Behind law until
> next year, congressional aides said Friday.
>
> Sens. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., and Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., have decided
> that there's not enough time this year to complete work on the
> legislation, which has not yet been formally introduced.
>
> The five-year-old law, up for a scheduled rewrite, requires math and
> reading tests in grades three through eight, and once in high school.
> Schools that miss testing benchmarks face increasingly stiff sanctions.
> The law, originally passed in 2001, is among President Bush's top
> domestic policy priorities.
>
> Kennedy, the panel's chairman, had previously said he wanted a bill
> before the Senate this year. He now is aiming, however, to bring a bill
> up for consideration early next year, the aides said. They spoke on
> condition of anonymity because negotiations over the content of the
> legislation are ongoing and sensitive.
>
> It may be even more difficult to pass a rewritten No Child bill next
> year because it is a presidential election year. It is harder to get
> the bipartisan consensus needed to pass major legislation against the
> backdrop of an intense presidential campaign.
>
> House lawmakers have not decided whether to keep trying to bring a bill
> to the floor in what little time is left in this calendar year. They,
> too, say time is running out.
>
> ``It is growing less likely that we will get a bill off the House floor
> in 2007,'' said Tom Kiley, a spokesman for Rep. George Miller,
> D-Calif., the chairman of the House education committee. ``We continue
> to work hard on the bill. Discussions with Republicans and education
> organizations continue.''
>
> Lawmakers in both parties - along with the Bush administration - are
> pushing for important revisions to the law. If the law isn't revised by
> Congress, the existing law stands.
>
> There is broad agreement that the law should be changed to encourage
> schools to measure individual student progress over time instead of
> using snapshot comparisons of certain grade levels.
>
> There is consensus, as well, that the law should be changed so that
> schools that miss progress goals by a little don't face the same
> consequences as schools that miss them by a lot.
>
> Deep divisions remain over some proposed changes, including merit pay
> for teachers and whether schools should be judged based on test scores
> in subjects other than reading and math.