Now that Republicans have taken control of the U.S. House of Representatives and bolstered their minority in the U.S. Senate, it remains to be seen if education is one area of federal policy that can avoid the partisan stalemate that many observers predict will paralyze Washington for the next two years. Republicans and Democrats famously came…

At the Republican National Convention in St. Paul this week, President Bush was expected to anoint Senator John McCain as his successor and the new leader of the party. However, it remains far from clear whether Senator McCain--and other top Republicans--will continue to embrace the federal mandates on school accountability at the center of the No…

Democrats are almost certain to leave their convention in Denver united behind Senator Barack Obama of Illinois as their nominee for president. However, it is less likely that they will settle an intraparty disagreement over the most pressing question in K-12 education policy: How much can the public expect of schools? The stark differences…

Supporters and critics of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) agree on only one thing and that the law should be fixed and quickly. However, it looks that Congress will not be able to make much progress in addressing the flaws of NCLB this year. This circumstance will endanger the prospects that the revision of the law might not be completed…

This article reports that education will be on the ballot November 4, even if the subject hasn't been on voters' minds much during the 2008 campaign season. The results of the elections are likely to have a significant impact on the way schools are financed, governed, and held accountable for the academic performance of their students. At the…

As Congress began debate last week over the size and scope of more than $120 billion in proposed emergency education aid, state leaders were anxiously awaiting the details so they could make specific plans to spend the economic-stimulus money. Governors, state legislators, and state schools chiefs have yet to learn what rules Congress will attach…

In this article, the author talks about the Shays-Farrell race as one of three closely watched contests in Connecticut that could help determine control of the U.S. House of Representatives in the midterm elections November 7. U.S. Rep. Christopher Shays, a Republican, and Diane Farrell, a Democratic, are the candidates for the state's 4th…

Many of the nation's governors gathered in Washington, DC for their winter conference called for changes to the No Child Left Behind Act or its regulations, even as the Bush administration continued to defend its level of cooperation with states under the law. Fifty state and territorial governors attended the National Governors Association (NGA) …

This article discusses legislative efforts to seek flexibility and to coax changes in the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. Even before U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings had been confirmed in her job on Inauguration Day, a few states had begun testing her pledge to work with them in carrying out the No Child Left Behind Act in a…