Fwd: [arn2-strategy] Feds Threaten Virgina Over NCLB Reading Tests

[Susan Harman <susanharman@igc.org>]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Bob Schaeffer <bobschaeffer@earthlink.net>
> Date: Thu Feb 1, 2007  9:49:53 AM US/Pacific
> To: ARN Main List <arn-l@interversity.org>,  arn2-strategy  
> <arn2-strategy@yahoogroups.com>
> Subject: [arn2-strategy] Feds Threaten Virgina Over NCLB Reading Tests
> Reply-To: arn2-strategy@yahoogroups.com
>
> VA. IS URGED TO OBEY "NO CHILD" ON READING TEST
> Washington Post -- February 1, 2007
> by Maria Glod
>
> The U.S. Department of Education threatened yesterday to take
> "enforcement action" against Virginia if any school districts defy a
> federal mandate to give reading tests to thousands of immigrant  
> students.
>
> In a sharply worded letter, Deputy Secretary of Education Raymond Simon
> said he is "greatly distressed" that some school districts, including
> Fairfax County, might violate the No Child Left Behind Act. Simon urged
> Virginia to enforce the law. If it does not, he said, federal education
> officials could step in, possibly withholding funds.
>
> The dispute began last year when federal education officials rejected
> the reading exams that Virginia has given to many students learning
> English, because the tests don't cover the same grade-level material as
> those given to students fluent in English. Virginia educators fighting
> the mandate say that students who haven't mastered the language are
> likely to fail a traditional test and that it is unfair to administer  
> it.
>
> Last week, the Fairfax School Board voted to refuse to give the reading
> test, which is administered in the spring, to many immigrant children.
> The Harrisonburg School Board passed a similar measure, and Arlington
> County school officials are considering such a step.
>
> Yesterday, federal education officials denied Virginia's request to use
> the old test for another year. They have said that Virginia educators
> had been aware of federal requirements for years and had ample time to
> design a new test. State officials disputed that, saying that they
> learned last spring that the assessment Virginia had used might be  
> rejected.
>
> Despite yesterday's warning from Simon, Fairfax Superintendent Jack D.
> Dale said he stands by the School Board's decision.
>
> Fairfax will continue to test how well students with limited  
> proficiency
> are learning to read, speak and write English, he said, but will only
> give Virginia's Standards of Learning reading tests to students who  
> have
> made significant progress.
>
> "Fairfax is doing the right thing for kids," Dale said. "We're holding
> all kids accountable to learn English and do it as quickly as  
> possible."
> He said that Fairfax would put the Standards of Learning test "in front
> of the kids when they've learned enough English to have it in front of
> them."
>
> Simon said in an interview that students learning English must be  
> tested
> on grade-level material to determine whether they are making progress.
> He asked Virginia state Superintendent Billy K. Cannaday Jr. to ensure
> that local school districts comply.
>
> "No Child Left Behind says all children will be able to read and do  
> math
> at grade level," Simon said. "The whole point of No Child Left Behind  
> is
> to find out what they know and don't know and target resources. . . .  
> We
> want the law to be followed."
>
> Cannaday said last night that he is "profoundly disappointed" in the
> federal response and that he joins educators statewide who are
> frustrated by the prospect of giving children who don't grasp the
> nuances of a language tests that may cover concepts such as metaphor,
> hyperbole or analogy.
>
> "Our superintendents have sworn to uphold the law, but they also have a
> moral and ethical contract with the community, and I think they are
> trying to balance the two," Cannaday said. "I think our superintendents
> are expressing frustration about how do they make sense out of  
> something
> that doesn't appear to be reasonable."
>
> About 10,200 Virginia students, including 4,000 in Fairfax, are  
> affected
> by the change, state education officials said. Students who have been  
> in
> the United States less than a year are exempt from taking the reading  
> tests.
>
> Others learning English are allowed accommodations, such as bilingual
> dictionaries or more time. Once students learn enough English, they  
> take
> the same tests as their peers.
>
>
>
> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/31/ 
> AR2007013102120.html
>
>
>
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