The Mankato Free Press

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency

It’s time to complete the overhaul of the overhaul.

The No Child Left Behind law of 2002 was an update of a bill passed and approved by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 to support the country’s public schools. Congress has been trying to reauthorize NCLB law since 2008 with no success.

This is the time, under the leadership of Minnesota Congressman John Kline, to get a revamped version of the law passed.

Both Republicans and Democrats agree NCLB needs big changes. It’s no secret the emphasis on frequently testing students and punishing schools when students don’t do well is thought to be an ineffective way of helping children achieve. The carrot-and-stick approach is outdated.

What parents and educators want and students need is for the House and Senate to pick out the best of both versions of their bills and get to work crafting a compromise. That will likely mean giving states the power to determine reasonable measurements of their students’ progress. For example, if a child is proficient in reading in grade three, why test his reading already again in grade four? Streamlining the number of tests will give teachers more time to teach in-depth material that includes the state’s requirements in the curriculum.

Accountability should still be part of the law. Just throwing money at schools via grants with no expectations isn’t really the best way of working toward establishing and maintaining quality programs. That doesn’t mean labeling a school “failing” and changing it to a charter school. That means providing schools with the extra staff and expertise that can help turn performance around for a significant number of children.

Kline, a Republican from Burnsville, is chair of the House-Senate conference committee working on the bill. He was chief sponsor of the bill passed by the House in July and will have to give up some ground to piece together a bill that will get bipartisan support. Any mention of vouchers will not likely make it through a final bill or be signed by President Obama.

The committee and Congress need to make changes to the bill so state waivers can be set aside for a more comprehensive, less abrasive plan that allows states to determine what the children who live there need to prepare for a life of education.