WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. House Education & the Workforce Committee Chairman John Boehner (R-OH) and Education Reform Subcommittee Chairman Mike Castle (R-DE) today praised the U.S. Department of Education for a new policy that will give states and local schools flexibility in assessing limited English proficient (LEP) students without compromising on the rights of such students to learn English under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The rule means schools around the country will not be unfairly identified by states as "needing improvement" as a result of complications relating to the difficulty of testing students who face language barriers or are hindered by inadequate schooling they received prior to arriving in the United States.

"This policy will help to ensure good schools are not incorrectly identified by states as needing improvement, while continuing to ensure limited English proficient students are learning English and making academic gains. It provides flexibility to states and schools without denying these children the opportunity they deserve to learn English in our public schools," said Boehner. "The policy reflects the intent Congress had when these provisions were written and passed two years ago with overwhelming bipartisan support. I congratulate Secretary Paige, Deputy Secretary Hickok, and the administration for taking this step."

"Once again, the Department of Education is giving states great flexibility in how they implement No Child Left Behind. This new transition policy will help schools, teachers and students meet the standards of this historic education reform bill, while at the same time ensuring those students for whom English is a second language receive the quality education they need and deserve," Castle said. "We stand ready and willing to help all schools meet the standards their states set and I appreciate the Department's willingness to address these issues."

According to a recent national survey, Republican leaders noted, 81 percent of Hispanic Americans support using standardized tests to decide whether students can move from one grade to the next, and large majorities of both African-Americans and Latinos support using such tests to "identify areas in which students need extra help and teachers could improve." Ninety-two percent of Hispanics agree it is "very important" for immigrants' children to learn English in school. Support is strongest among those born abroad. (Hannah Gladfelter Rubin, "Survey Finds Hispanics Support Schools, Testing," Education Daily, January 30, 2004)

"This policy comes two months after the Education Department finalized a similar rule on students with special needs that will also help to ensure good schools are not wrongly identified by states as needing improvement," said Boehner. "Many of the law's skeptics ought to stop and take a look at these rules and policies, and recognize they provide significant flexibility to states and schools without compromising the ability of disadvantaged children to access a quality education. They are reasonable and fair, particularly in light of the billions in federal education funds states are receiving to implement the law's requirements."

NCLB requires states to test all public school students annually in key subjects, such as reading and math. The Department of Education policy gives states and local school districts flexibility in assessing limited English proficient students. Newly-arrived limited English proficient students, during their first year in the United States, will be allowed to take either the English proficiency assessments or the state language arts assessment, while being allowed to use appropriate accommodations for the math assessment. These first-year students' scores will not be computed for adequate yearly progress (AYP) purposes, but they will still be calculated as participants, and the students' scores will be included in AYP calculations beginning in their second years.

The flexibility policy also allows states to include limited English proficient students in a school's LEP subgroup (AYP purposes) for up to two years after these students attain English proficiency, helping to ensure schools receive credit for good work they have done in helping LEP students attain full proficiency.