The political leadership of Washington State got “dope slapped” by the US Department of Education. This was a good thing. Secretary Duncan revoked Washington’s waiver of No Child Left Behind sanctions as a result of the Washington legislature’s failure to meet waiver requirements. Sorry, Washington, but thanks. Every now and again, a public dope slapping helps the rest of us understand how the real world works. It keeps all of us honest and true to our word.
The dope slapping worked like this. The No Child Left Behind Act was flawed from its inception in 2001. In a nutshell, school districts were commanded by Congress to cause every child, 100% of all children enrolled in the district, to demonstrate proficiency in reading and mathematics on a statewide assessment or the school district would be punished. Although many in Congress understood/understand the flaws in the NCLB requirement and scheme of enforcement, Congress has not found the courage to repeal, amend or re-issue NCLB. Hence, the Obama administration used executive powers to create a waiver system that would allow school districts and states to escape the punishment of NCLB if the state would meet a set of USDE requirements. Because public education is a state function, it was left to the leadership of each state to enforce the commands and potential punishments. Hence, states were allowed to seek a waiver from the NCLB sanctions. Forty-two states plus the District of Columbia have been issued an NCLB waiver. Washington received a tentative waiver contingent upon meeting all of the USDE requirements, but time ran out on the Washington recalcitrance.
Sometimes children demonstrate a refusal to believe that they will be disciplined as a consequence of their continuous refusal to do what they are told to do. It often works like this.
Parent: I know that you don’t like eating liver, even though liver is good for you. And, even though I have asked you to learn to like eating liver, you and I know that liver makes you vomit and neither of us likes that. And, even though I told you that if you won’t eat the liver we serve once each week for supper I would send you to bed right after supper, neither of us is happy with that arrangement. So, I have a new deal for us. Are you interested?
Child: Good. I hate liver. What do I have to do instead of eating liver?
Parent: Instead of liver, you will need to eat a serving of beets, a sardine, and drink a glass of fruit juice. These three things also good for you. They will make you strong.
Child: Ok. I can drink the fruit juice and I suppose I can eat at least one beet. But, I don’t want to eat a sardine.
Parent: Please understand that the combination of beets, a sardine and fruit juice are really good for you, much better in fact than liver. But, beets, sardine and fruit juices need to be eaten as a group. If you can’t eat the sardine, then we will need to return to the liver.
Child: And, if I refuse?
Parent: Then, it’s lights out time and you are going to bed right after supper. That was the deal with the liver. Neither of us liked the liver idea, so I substituted three new foods. But, the deal now is just like the liver deal. If you eat the beets and sardine and drink the juice, you can stay up. If not, then off to bed you go.
Child: Let’s talk tomorrow. (Tomorrow comes and goes.)
Child: Let’s talk tomorrow. (Tomorrow comes and goes.)
Parent: How are we doing with that sardine?
Child: I refuse to eat the sardine.
Parent: Say good night, then. (The lights are turned off and child is shuffled off to bed.)
At this time, political leaders in Arizona, Kansas and Oregon are in the same position that Washington was recently. These three states are at risk of losing their NCLB waivers because of their recalcitrance to meet the USDE requirements for keeping a waiver. I would imagine that folks in Arizona, Kansas and Oregon are sniffing something that smells a lot like a sardine and looking over their shoulder at the light switch on the wall.