By Lynn Hatter
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wfsu/local-wfsu-993747.mp3
Tallahassee, FL – Florida is applying for an exemption to the federal No Child Left Behind Law. Lynn Hatter reports the Obama administration announced earlier in the year that it would allow states to apply for the waivers if they have their own accountability systems.
Florida wants to bridge the gap between how the state rates its schools and how the federal government does. Right now a school can earn an A according to the state, but fail to meet the governments "adequate yearly progress" rules. That school would then be subject to corrective actions.
According to Federal education standards, 90-percent of Florida schools are failing. But only one percent of schools are failing according to the state. This year more than a third of the nation's public schools failed to meet the No Child Left Behind requirements and the U.S. Department of Education says the number could rise to 80-percent this year as the rules become harder to reach.
The No Child Left Behind Law calls for 100-percent of students in public schools to be proficient in math and reading by 2014.