BOSTON (AP) - State education officials are
praising President Barack Obama's decision to free Massachusetts from
some requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind law.
The White House is expected
to announce Thursday that Massachusetts is among 10 states to be
granted waivers from the 2002 law, which set a goal of having all
children proficient in reading and math by 2014.
State education
commissioner Mitchell Chester says No Child Left Behind set unrealistic
goals for perfection. Under the federal measuring stick known as
"Adequate Yearly Progress," 80% of Massachusetts schools and 90% school
districts are failing. He says those figures defy common sense.
Massachusetts Secretary of
Education Paul Reville says the waiver represents a vote of
confidence in the state's own five-tiered system for identifying and
improving low-performing schools.
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