If you've been on another planet this week, you may not have heard that Congress passed the long awaited E.S.E.A. bill, which President Bush intends to sign in January. If you were out of our solar system all year, you might not know that this legislation requires states to test every student in grades 3 through 8 and report the results broken down by subgroup (e.g. race); to establish a minimum level of proficiency; and to take action against schools that fail to make satisfactory progress towards proficiency for all students, among other things. There is widespread agreement that implementing this new accountability system will be a big challenge. There is less agreement on whether the bill itself is anything to be excited about. For a good summary of what's in it, see "Education Law Biggest in 35 Years," by Gail Russell Chaddock, The Christian Science Monitor, December 18, 2001. For the story of how this legislation came about and managed to survive lobbying, political upheaval in the Senate, and the outbreak of a war on terrorism, see "Long Road to Reform," by David Broder, The Washington Post, December 17, 2001. For a look at what two skeptics about the overall legislative package regard as its most hopeful feature, see "Adding Value to Education," by William J. Bennett and Chester E. Finn, Jr, The Washington Times, December 20, 2001.
