"MUST" won't go away . . .

It didn't take long to identify the vehicle to move forward on the language change to preserve the state's NCLB waiver I blogged about here.  It is a new bill being drafted by Governor Inslee and Superintendent Dorn that changes the language to force use of state test results in individual teacher evaluations.  As shared in this Seattle Times piece it is expected to change enough votes for passage in the Senate where a similar bill was recently defeated.


Inslee spokeswoman Jaime Smith said the governor met Tuesday afternoon with lawmakers from both parties to hammer out a compromise that would establish the requirement to allow the state to keep its waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind law — and keep control over some $40 million that comes with the waiver.

The compromise would delay the move until the 2017-2018 school year and include a provision that voids the requirement if the state cannot retain the waiver, Smith said.

When Inslee failed to convince Secretary Duncan to continue the waiver without the language change it was only a matter of time before something emerged.  The threat of losing control over $40 million was greater than the lobby effort against the change.  Could I be wrong again?  Could it still fail when it comes to the Senate floor for a vote?  Will the House approve it?  Well, I was wrong before and can be again, but I'm betting the language in the law will be amended to "must" and will have an influence on the teacher growth focus of the work when implemented.  We can still hold out hope that before 2017-18 there will be a new ESEA bill that replaces the sanctions of NCLB with something that maintains a focus on achievement for all students, that has accountability for growth over time, and that results in a collaborative effort to support teachers and schools in this effort.