U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan wouldn't reveal even a hint regarding the status of California's request for a waiver from the almost unrealistic provisions of the Uncomplicated and Secondary Education Act, also known as No Child Left Behind, in an interview on Wedneday.

U.S. Secretary of Educational activity Arne Duncan speaking at Sequoia High School in Redwood Urban center, CA. Photo from video of event. (Click to enlarge)

Duncan merely reiterated what country education officials have already acknowledged. "Our staff is withal in chat with the state, then we're withal working on it," the Secretary told EdSource Today in a phone call yesterday during the first leg of his "Education Drives America" Dorsum-to-School charabanc bout every bit information technology rolled through the Bay Area.

In June, the California State Lath of Education and State Superintendent Tom Torlakson submitted a general waiver request to the Department of Education, bypassing the Secretary'south waiver package in office because information technology required states to implement a teacher evaluation organization, even though that is not office of the federal instruction police force.

Since it announced the waiver procedure i twelvemonth agone this month, the Department has canonical proposals from 33 states and the District of Columbia. California is amongst eleven states, plus Puerto Rico and the Bureau of Indian Education, that have waivers pending.

Duncan gave no indication of when the Department will announce its decisions on the remaining requests except to say that he and his staff are "working absolutely as fast equally we tin can."

He was also noncommittal when pressed virtually the possibility of a commune waiver process, which is beingness pushed past the California Office to Reform Education, or CORE, a coalition of eight of the state'south largest districts, including Los Angeles, Fresno, and Long Embankment. Duncan said any discussion of that was premature.

"You're sort of ahead of me on that," said the Secretary. "Our focus now is on working with usa, and once that process is done, nosotros'll take a hard look at where nosotros're at and figure out what the adjacent steps are."

CORE districts have been frustrated by the state's unwillingness to submit a proper application. Without a waiver, districts could exist bailiwick to harsh penalties if they fail at what most educators hold is an impossible goal of having 100 percent of their students score at the practiced level or better on the California Standards Tests by 2014.

Sue Burr, executive director of the State Board of Education, wouldn't venture a guess on whether California will go a waiver. "I am not willing to speculate on (the Department's) decision-making process. We continue to accept productive conversations with Secretarial assistant Duncan'south staff and are appreciative of their ongoing offers of technical help."

Tension with teachers

The secretary was eager to weigh in on the relationship between the Obama Administration and the nation's teachers unions, particularly in light of the Chicago teachers' strike, calling the tensions overblown by the media.

"There are literally hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of districts all over the country that accept shown great spousal relationship-management collaboration, and frankly oasis't had a lot of drama," said Duncan, pointing out that subsequently two years of on-and-off negotiations, Boston mayor Thomas Menino and the teachers union yesterday reached a tentative agreement on new contract. "The media merely covers it when in that location's screaming," Duncan said.

He also dismissed concerns by some teachers that they're being vilified for opposing efforts to evaluate them based on educatee test scores. "To be articulate, nosotros want to look at how much students are improving each year, but nosotros've said from day one, we accept to expect at multiple measures. Anyone who thinks that an entire evaluation should be based on test scores, that's crazy."

Duncan said the Department of Didactics is doing whatever it can to attract and retain talented teachers, including launching the RESPECT Project. President Obama is requesting $five billion from Congress to create a competitive grant program to encourage collaboration among states, districts, unions, and colleges of educational activity to reform and elevate the teaching profession. "I think in that location's tremendous mutual ground there," said the Secretary.

John Fensterwald contributed to this report.

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