WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration says it will exempt states from requirements of a Bush-era education law if they meet certain conditions the White House favors.
The conditions include enacting standards to prepare students for college and careers, evaluating teachers and principals and making them more accountable. States can then ask to be exempted from some of the law’s specific requirements.
Officials say many requirements of the once-heralded No Child Left Behind education law have become unintentional barriers to learning and that too many schools, even those making modest progress, are in danger of being labeled as failing.
The administration says it is acting without congressional approval because Congress has yet to update the law.
President Barack Obama planned to discuss the changes at the White House on Friday.