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Education candidate eyes fixing No Child Left Behind

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

January 14, 2009

WASHINGTON - Barack Obama's choice for education secretary, Arne Duncan, said yesterday he wants to improve the No Child Left Behind law and lure more people into teaching.

And the nation's school children should be on notice: Duncan would like longer school days, Saturday school and summer school.

Duncan, the Chicago schools chief, got a friendly reception from Republicans and Democrats at his Senate confirmation hearing, a sign that his nomination will be approved swiftly.

The education community is watching closely to see how Obama will proceed on President Bush's No Child Left Behind law, which passed with bipartisan support in 2001 but is deeply unpopular today. Obama has pledged to overhaul it but has been vague about how far he would go.

Duncan told the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee the law should not punish schools where only a handful of kids are struggling.

He praised the law for shining a spotlight on children who need the most help. No Child Left Behind holds schools accountable for progress among each group of kids, including those who have disabilities or are learning English.

But right now, a school is labeled as failing if only one group of kids is struggling.

Give individual kids more tutoring and other support, Duncan said. "Let's not take too blunt an instrument to an entire school," he said. "Those teachers are doing a Herculean job, and we need to recognize that. We need to reward that."