The Advocate – Will Sentell
“Education officials, who often clash, agree that a new federal law to replace the No Child Left Behind measure will give Louisiana more flexibility to improve public schools. State Superintendent of Education John White; Scott Richard, executive director of the Louisiana School Boards Association; and Senate Education Committee Chairman Conrad Appel, R-Metairie, all praised portions of the 1,000-page bill. “It is very positive that Congress has formally clarified that issues of standards, testing and accountability are the domain of the states,” White said. Richard agreed. “I do think the flexibility that is in the new law will allow states to work more closely with local school districts to take some of the emphasis off one test being the sole determinant of student achievement,” he said. Appel said the law rebuts the notion of a federal takeover of education, one of the rallying cries of Common Core opponents.”(more)