Philadelphia Inquirer--Feds give states more time to bolster struggling schools
WASHINGTON (AP) - States will have more time to identify failing schools as part of new Obama administration rules aimed at supporting troubled public schools and students who are struggling.
The rules, released Monday, provide a broad framework for states as they design new accountability systems to evaluate schools, to improve ones that aren't adequately educating students and to narrow achievement gaps. It's a key part of the bipartisan education law passed almost one year ago and signed into law by President Barack Obama to replace the widely criticized No Child Left Behind Act.
Under the law, states may design accountability systems that consider measures beyond test scores and high school graduation rates. They may decide how much weight to give to each of those indicators of success - and others such as school climate, advanced coursework and chronic absenteeism - as long as they measure the performance of all students, including "sub-groups of students" such as racial minorities, children from low-income families, and special education students.
http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20161128_ap_72f5823cf1ff48f093132561ef59570e.html