Giving Compass' Take:

· In a recent Mississippi roundtable with students, parents and educators, Betsy DeVos revealed a letter outlining the flexibilities for states under the Every Student Succeeds Act. 

· What are some differences between the Every Student Succeeds Act and the No Child Left Behind Act? How does ESSA give parents a voice to advocate for their children?

· Read more about the Every Student Succeeds Act and what states did to get their plans approved


When ESSA became law in 2015, it replaced the No Child Left Behind Act and was centered around the idea of increased flexibility. Whereas states were previously held to more uniform and rigid standards in measuring student performance, under ESSA, states were handed more decision-making power in the curricula, intervention strategie and assessments they give their students. That means rethinking one-size-fits all standardized tests in what subjects they cover, when they're given and how to consider individual student progress.

At the same time, ESSA requires states to hold schools accountable by rating them using a chosen set of indicator metrics. In doing that, states are also responsible for making sure parents can easily understand these ratings. But so far, the ways in which states are implementing accountability measures, as well as the way they're presented to parents, have been vastly different. This can make it difficult for parents to understand exactly how these new local decisions affect their school and their children. The "Dear Parent" letter was created to iron out some of these crucial questions: "We hope that this document empowers you with information that will help you advocate for better education for your child and every child in your state and district and help you make the right choices for your family," the letter says.

Read the full article about Betsy DeVos' 'Dear Parent' letter by Jessica Campisi at Education Dive.