In February 2012, Massachusetts received a waiver of certain requirements of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA, also known as the No Child Left Behind Act). This waiver allowed the state to revise its school and district accountability system in exchange for implementing several key initiatives:
* College- and career-ready expectations for all students;
* Differentiated recognition, accountability, and support for schools and districts;
* New approaches to educator evaluation and support; and
* Reducing duplication and unnecessary burden on school districts.
This winter Massachusetts will apply to extend its ESEA flexibility waiver, and we are seeking feedback from stakeholders about what changes we might make to further improve our accountability system. We will be reaching out to parents, teachers, district and school administrators, school committee members, students, and other community members.
This survey will be open until January 17, 2014. Your input will be used to inform the proposal to be submitted for federal review at the end of February 2014. Your individual responses will be kept confidential, and only a summary of the results will be reported.
If you have questions about Massachusetts' ESEA flexibility waiver, please email esea@doe.mass.edu. If you have questions about this survey, please email research@doe.mass.edu.