Study: No Child Left Behind rules looser in Minnesota

A national study released today shows it is easier for Minnesota schools to meet the federal No Child Left Behind law requirements than for schools in many other states.

The study, from the Washington-based think tank Thomas B. Fordham Institute, shows that out of 28 states examined, only five states make it easier for elementary schools to meet the standards than Minnesota.

Which state makes it easiest of all? Wisconsin, the study says.

According to the 2001 No Child Left Behind law, states must test how different student groups fare in school. If one group -- such as special education students -- fails to meet test targets, the whole school is labeled as not making "adequate yearly progress."

By 2014, the law says, every student group in the country is supposed to pass the tests.

In its study, Fordham picked a diverse group of 18 elementary and 18 middle schools from around the nation. Researchers used these schools' test results from a common, nationwide test to predict how the schools would fare on state benchmarks if located in each of 28 states.

In Massachusetts, the state that made it hardest for elementary schools, only one of 18 schools made state benchmarks. In Minnesota, half of the schools made the grade. In Wisconsin, 17 out of 18 passed.

The report says that Minnesota makes it easier for schools to pass No Child Left Behind by calculating margin-of-error measurements for student proficiency rates differently than many states.

Under No Child Left Behind, many schools don't pass benchmarks because of the performance of special education students and students who are learning English. In Minnesota, the number of students required for those groups' performance to be counted is higher (40 students), than the number of students required (20) to count subgroups divided by race and economic status.

That way, Minnesota's schools have fewer of those groups that are more likely not to pass the state testing benchmarks.

Randy Wanke, a Minnesota Department of Education spokesman, said in response to the study that Minnesota has worked to create a rigorous accountability system over the past several years.

"That system is built on the simple premise that every Minnesota student has the right to high expectations," he said, adding that Gov. Tim Pawlenty has proposed legislation to further strengthen the system to ensure that every Minnesota student is ready for college and careers when they graduate from high school.