The U.S. Department of Education has denied the California board of education’s request to waive a requirement of the No Child Left Behind Act on testing kindergartners and 1st graders with limited English skills in reading and writing. California already tests kindergartners and 1st graders who are English-language learners in English in listening and speaking.
Mary Ann Zehr
Mary Ann Zehr was an assistant editor for Education Week. Her beats included English-language learners, bilingual education, immigrants, dropouts, achievement-gap issues, and charter and private schools. She was the author of the blog Learning the Language.
Books sit on shelves in an elementary school library in suburban Atlanta on Aug. 18, 2023. The Trump administration's efforts to eliminate the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the largest source of federal support for libraries, is throwing a number of library programs—including efforts to grow the ranks of school librarians—into a state of uncertainty.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon arrives before President Donald Trump attends a reception for Women's History Month in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, March 26, 2025, in Washington. In a letter Friday, McMahon told state leaders on March 28 that their time to spend remaining COVID relief funds would end that same day.
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