Losing the Good Fight

Wisconsin Superintendent of Schools Elizabeth Burmaster has
admitted that the number of schools not meeting standards will more than double
this year, a Journal-Sentinel article reported
yesterday morning. In the past week, according to the article, an Education
Sector report
claimed Wisconsin
was frustrating the purpose of the law by intentionally taking steps to keep
schools off the lists of failing schools.



First, what is wrong with taking steps to keep schools off the failing lists?
Even if Wisconsin
was engaging in such activities, how can you fault them by using all available
means, under the law, to help the public schools (wouldn't that classify as
part of a state superintendent's duty)? If there are technical loopholes in the
law, you cannot fault Wisconsin
for taking advantage of them, but you certainly can blame the law. Education is
a state right after all, and if NCLB provides states flexibility (which it
must), then they should use that flexibility.



Second, even with NCLB's flexibility, states can only keep death at the door
for so long. Wisconsin
is reporting doubling the list of schools not meeting standards and that trend
is likely to continue for the next couple of years as the states are losing
their ability to avoid the outrageous mandates of yearly progress. The lesson
here is button down the hatches education...the storm on the horizon is here
and it is likely to last for the next few of years.