politics

CHICAGO - When Arne Duncan heads to Washington, his driving task will be to rethink No Child Left Behind, the all-or-nothing law that has shaped how every child and every classroom in the country is judged.

As President-elect Barack Obama's pick for U.S. Education Secretary, Duncan, the fast-rising South Sider tapped to head Chicago Public Schools in 2001, is expected to be more flexible with a reform criticized for its rigidity.

Students will likely still have to take high-stakes tests, but Duncan and Obama have said they hope to find a more nuanced way of evaluating whether schools succeed or stumble.

"He wants to make it work and hopefully see more carrot and less stick," said Jesse Ruiz, chairman of the Illinois State Board of Education.

Duncan, 44, has publicly lauded the high expectations and accountability of No Child Left Behind, but also faulted its one-size-fits-all approach. As Chicago schools chief, he worked to give schools some latitude in meeting the law's demands and challenged Congress to double funding.

Offering few specifics, Duncan said he plans to sit down with teachers, administrators and business leaders nationwide before he decides the law's future. An academic leader with a reputation for drawing talented people with competing views to the table in Chicago, Duncan said he plans to do the same on the national stage.

Emphasizing the importance he places on education, he called it "the civil rights issue of our generation."

Obama formally named Duncan as his pick for education secretary at Dodge Renaissance Academy on the West Side, highlighting a school that closed, reorganized, opened anew and improved its academic standing under Duncan's stewardship. Obama complimented Duncan's practical approach to education reform. "For Arne, school reform isn't just a theory in a book. It's the cause of his life," Obama said.

If confirmed, Duncan would be only the second school superintendent to become the nation's top education leader. Former Houston Superintendent Rod Paige was the first under President Bush.

Neither Obama nor Duncan uttered the words "No Child Left Behind" on Tuesday. Nevertheless, experts cite as their primary task the pending overhaul of the law, a 2002 Bush initiative that aimed to have all children read and do math at grade level by 2014. The law's renewal is a year overdue in Congress.

Michael Petrilli, a top aide at the U.S. Education Department under Bush who now works with the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, said he suspects Duncan may back away from the 2014 deadline. Other experts suspect Duncan instead may focus on the skill level every student needs to achieve upon high school graduation.

The proposed economic stimulus package includes funding for school construction, an item Duncan may tackle before he even arrives in Washington, said Jack Jennings, president of the Center on Education Policy. Duncan and Obama also may focus on the issues of college affordability or early childhood education during the first few months in office, experts said.