SACRAMENTO — California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today made the following comment about the latest federal policy [http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2004/03/03292004.html] (Outside Source) for calculating participation rates under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law::

"I appreciate the new policy announced today by Education Secretary Paige designed to give states additional flexibility when calculating participation rates. I agree with Secretary Paige that every student should count, but if they don't take the tests, they can't be counted. We want all students to participate in our assessment program. However, schools should not be penalized when participation is affected by factors outside of their control, like student medical emergencies or when parents opt their children out of testing, as state law allows in California. In California's proposed NCLB Workbook changes, I have called for additional flexibility when parents opt their children out from tests. I hope that in light of the flexibility announced today, the Federal government will give our proposed Workbook change due consideration.

"I am also heartened by the new federal option to average school participation rates over three years. After an initial review, it appears that the changes announced today are likely to have minimal immediate impact in California, but, in the long run, could prove helpful with our implementation of NCLB. Seen as a package, the last four NCLB changes announced by the US Department of Education show welcome effort to provide flexibility to states struggling with the complexities of this law.

"However, I continue to believe that to make NCLB most effective for improving student performance, states should have the option of using a growth model that recognizes improvement in our schools."