|
By Walter Griffin, Of the NEWS Staff
Last updated: Wednesday, April 7, 2004
State panel aims to limit
funds for 'No Child' act
AUGUSTA - If the federal government wants state educators to implement
the No Child Left Behind Act, it is going to have to
provide the money to do so.That was the message delivered by lawmakers
Monday when they gave final approval to a resolve
that prohibits state funds from being used to implement No Child Left
Behind.
Supporters of the bill have contended that No Child Left Behind
represents an unfunded federal mandate and want assurances
that state funds will not be used to fill that gap.
Supporters also have stated their belief that the state's Learning
Results program is better suited to Maine schoolchildren than is
the federal program. Learning Results has been in place since 1997. No
Child Left Behind became law in 2001.
"No Child Left Behind has been a confusing and unnecessary federal
mandate," the sponsor of the bill, state Sen. Michael
Brennan, D-Portland, said Monday. "This bill is significant because it
makes it clear to Maine educators that implementing
Maine's Learning Results is our top priority. State resources will be
utilized to support the extraordinary efforts of Maine
teachers who are making Learning Results work in our state."
The resolve does allow the Department of Education to use state funds to
conduct an investigation into the long-term costs of
participating in No Child Left Behind. It also requires Commissioner of
Education Susan Gendron to determine each year
whether schools are meeting state standards in order to comply with
provisions of the federal act.
Although the federal Department of Education has increased its
contributions to the state for educational purposes, the amount
still is not enough to cover the cost of implementing NCLB, Gendron
informed the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee
earlier this year.
The federal government provided the state with $93 million for education
last year, some of which was used to implement parts
of NCLB. The state spends more than $1.6 billion on education annually.
Under NCLB, states are required to have standardized testing in place
from grades three onward. The federal program also
requires states to sanction schools and teachers that fail to meet
established sets of guidelines. Learning Results also requires
testing but not as frequently as NCLB. Learning Results aims to assist
schools that underperform, rather than punish them.
"Teachers, administrators and local school budgets are burdened by the
requirements of No Child Left Behind," said state Sen.
Neria Douglass, D-Auburn, chairwoman of the education committee. "This
resolve allows us to comply within the federal
resources Maine receives, but protects us from further costs."
Maine is not the only state concerned with the long-term costs of NCLB.
Deputy Commissioner Patrick Phillips said Tuesday
that Maine has aligned itself with an association of state school
leaders from across the country to investigate those costs and
"make sure that we're all asking similar questions."
Phillips said that because the ability to separate state and federal
funds within the overall system was "difficult to untangle,"
there was "some benefit to linking with other states on this study."
Maine also is among the 14 states whose education leaders have signed a
letter to U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige saying
they want to use their own methods to gauge a school's performance
rather than those outlined in NCLB.
Brennan's bill requires the Maine Department of Education to review
whether or not NCLB standards match Learning Results
and report its findings to the Legislature's education committee by
mid-January.
|
