Meeting set on education act’s effects

The Arkansas Education Association will host a townhall-style meeting from 6 to 7 p.m. Thursday that will focus on measures to carry out in Arkansas the requirements of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015.

The forum, which will be at the association’s headquarters at 1500 W. Fourth St., is open to the public but requires registration on the association’s website, aeaonline.org, or by calling 501-375-4611.

The meeting will feature panelists from the National Education Association, Arkansas Department of Education, Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, Arkansas Out of School Network, and other stakeholder groups.

Participants will ask and answer questions about the state’s process, plan design and implementation of the federal law, as well as offer solutions for ensuring that all Arkansas students are successful.

The Every Student Succeeds Act is the latest version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1964. It replaces the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002, which called for every student, regardless of learning disability, poverty, English speaking skills and race, to achieve at grade level on state math and literacy tests by the 2013-14 school year.

The newest version of the federal law is intended to give states more of a say in how schools and school districts are held accountable for student achievement, including options for expanding those measures beyond standardized test scores.

In a news release about the town hall, Brenda Robinson, president of the Arkansas Education Association, encouraged educators and community members to become actively involved the preparing state and local plans for carrying out the law and improving schools.

“Even now, most parents and educators are unaware of the flexibility that the state has under ESSA,” Robinson said. “Awareness, education and action are the ingredients and steps we need to make sure that we do what is right for Arkansas students.”

She said the revised law provides an opportunity to repurpose federal dollars to carry out researched, proven strategies tailored to the needs of schools and districts. The law continues to require student data to be split by subgroups of students to prevent the performance of a small group from being covered up by the performance of an overall student body.