A better measurement

By The Gazette Editorial Board

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We're glad to see that Iowa Education Director Jason Glass has applied for a waiver from federal No Child Left Behind requirements on behalf of Iowa's schools.

Although the decade-old set of federal standards and sanctions has done some good, shedding light on the performance and progress of Iowa's educational system, many of the requirements are unwieldy, unrealistic and of little use in discussions about how to make schools better.

We like the idea of replacing that one-size-fits-all blueprint with ambitious homegrown plans to improve school performance and student achievement.

But if state leaders seek to use Iowa's NCLB waiver application as political leverage to push through reforms that won't significantly improve education, we might as well stick with the evil we already know.

Iowa's NCLB waiver application, which is subject to federal approval, incorporates several elements of Branstad's school reform proposal, unveiled last fall.

In it, for example, Glass proposes using standardized tests to chart student growth over time, not only during a single academic year, and implementing value-added assessments to track and encourage teacher improvement.

But there is no consensus yet among legislators and educators about those specific reforms - particularly involving teacher evaluation.

Education leaders in the Senate and House have been hard at work examining the details of the governor's reform blueprint and crafting amendments for debate.

A hearing on reforms proposed by members of the House was scheduled for Monday.

The proposal has the support of the Iowa Association of School Boards, the School Administrators of Iowa and Urban Education Network.

Representatives from the Iowa State Education Association say the group still has questions about plan details and how members might be included in its design.

We would hope the very process of developing a homegrown system of assessment would clarify just what it is we expect from our schools, our teachers and students.

That's no guarantee, of course - it will take a lot of work and collaboration to implement a state-based accountability system that will do more than replace one set of imperfect guidelines with another.

That's why we're troubled by Glass' apparent attempt to use the waiver application as a means to pressure lawmakers into passing education reforms as-is.

Last week, Glass threatened to withdraw the NCLB waiver application if legislators approve changes that deviate significantly from the governor's plan.

That threat is shortsighted, and shows a lack of respect for Iowa's education community.

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