No Child Left Behind: Flexibility for Students With Disabilities
 Under a new regulation of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), when measuring adequate yearly progress (AYP), local school districts will have the flexibility to count the proficient scores of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who participate in assessments based on alternate achievement standards.
Among the key features of this new provision are:
Accountability and High Expectations for Every Child
- The NCLB law prohibits schools from excluding students with disabilities from the accountability system, a practice some have used to mask the fact that certain groups of children are not learning. Excluding students with disabilities from testing is also a violation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
- Most students with disabilities should participate in the same tests taken by their peers. Some of these students should receive accommodations such as increased time or the use of assistive technology to ensure that their unique needs are taken into account during the assessment process.
Flexibility for States and Districts
- The number of proficient scores based on alternate achievement standards cannot exceed one percent of all students in the grades tested. However, the new regulation will allow states and school districts to apply for exception to the one percent cap if they can demonstrate that they have a larger population of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities (as defined by the state). Individual schools, however, are not subject to the one percent cap. Michigan will be applying to the U.S. Department of Education for an exception. Districts can apply to the state for an exception to the cap. The state has applied for the exception and is developing the application process and criteria for districts to apply to the state. At present, it is anticipated that districts will have been notified as to how to apply for an exception to the one percent cap around May 1, 2004. The process and criteria that will be used to review districts’ applications will also be posted on the MI-Access Web page at the Michigan Department of Education’s Web site, www.mi.gov/mi-access.
Parents' Right to Know Their Children Are Learning
- The No Child Left Behind Act, building on IDEA, intentionally prohibits states and schools from excluding students with disabilities from accountability systems so districts and schools will have data to help review curriculum and instruction being provided to students with disabilities. Also, parents will have additional data from the state assessment(s) to use as one indicator to help determine whether their children are getting the high-quality education they deserve.
For a detailed copy of this regulation, visit www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/finrule/2003-4/120903a.html.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, adapted from The Achiever, January 15, 2004.
No Child Left Behind Empowers Parents
“Reading is the one skill upon which all others depend, and research tells us that children who don’t read during the summer may lose a month or more of the reading progress they had made in school.”
U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige, announcing the pilot No Child Left Behind Summer Reading Achievers Program
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No Child Left Behind (NCLB) ensures that parents receive the information they need to make informed decisions about their child's education. Using achievement data from the previous school year, each state must compile a list of schools that did not make academic progress (commonly referred to as adequate yearly progress or AYP). Working within NCLB’s parameters, each state sets its own standards for academic achievement and goals for annual progress. Schools receiving federal Title I funds that don't meet the state’s goals are designated as needing improvement; schools must then notify the parents.
Parents should receive this notification in their mailboxes each fall. For many, the results may be unexpected. Parents may be understandably concerned about their child's school, but they should also feel empowered.
“Beginning in the earliest years, communities must provide opportunities so all of our children come to school ready to learn.”
Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Watkins |
NCLB reinforces parents’ right to know how their child's school is doing and whether their child's teachers meet the definition of a "highly qualified" teacher in the NCLB law. Parents can choose to transfer their child from a school needing improvement to a public school that is performing better. Children from low-income families in schools needing improvement for more than one year will be eligible to receive additional academic services or tutoring—at no cost to parents. Parents who have questions should contact their local school districts or log on to www.ed.gov for more information.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, The Achiever, September 15, 2003, Vol. 2, No. 12, Page 1.
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