Source: White House webcast.

President Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Human activity during a White Firm ceremony on December. xi, 2015, flanked by Senators Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., left, and Patty Murray, D-Wash., right.

Source: White Business firm webcast.

President Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Act during a White House ceremony on Dec. eleven, 2015, flanked by Senators Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., left, and Patty Murray, D-Wash., correct.

One week after President Barack Obama signed the Every Student Succeeds Human activity, the U.S. Department of Teaching sent out a 4-folio letter today to the school chiefs of every state providing guidance for what to do during the transition catamenia to the new law, which will go into effect in the 2017-18 school year.

As part of the transition, the federal government will agree 2 public hearings, ane in Washington D.C., and one in Los Angeles. The California meeting is scheduled for Jan. 19.

The federal hearing is scheduled a week afterwards the State Lath of Education coming together, at which the board will hear a presentation on the touch on of the new law on California'due south plan to create a new school accountability and improvement system over the next year. Federal education officials currently are drawing up regulations designed to flesh out the new law and actions u.s. must take in the transition to it from the No Child Left Behind Act.

The letter to the land chiefs indicates that the Department of Education is conducting "a careful review" of the work each land is currently engaged in. Information technology likewise pledged to "provide ongoing guidance to support schools, districts and states in the transition to ESSA." ESSA is the acronym that is being used every bit autograph to describe the new law.

What complicates the transition to the new police force is that about states have been issued waivers from some of the most onerous provisions of the No Kid Left Behind law. A small number of states which either did non employ for a waiver or did non receive one, including California, are still subject to the provisions of the old police force, the No Child Left Behind law. There is well-nigh universal understanding that law has run its course and did non succeed in coming close to reaching the ambitious goals it was intended it to achieve — academic proficiency of every public school kid in America.

Ann Whalen, who is interim assistant secretary for elementary and secondary didactics, conceded that her ain department is reviewing the act "to improve empathize the touch of whatever changes to the requirements for country assessment systems." But, she wrote, "the essential requirements are unchanged."

She did annotation that the states will not have to submit new "annual measurable objectives" for the department's review and blessing by next month, as currently required. At the aforementioned fourth dimension, she said that all states and districts "must continue to publish report cards that include data that shows how a district'due south student accomplishment on land assessments compares to students and subgroups of students in the state as a whole."

Whalen also acknowledged that the guidance letter itself would enhance additional questions, specially nearly how it applies to individual schools and districts.  She said that more answers will be provided on the department's website and questions could be emailed to essa.questions@ed.gov.

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