Having received a waiver from the No Child Left Behind mandates, some states are setting student expectations according to racial subgroups.
Florida's Board of Education is being sharply criticized for setting student achievement goals that are based in part on a student's race. Neal McCluskey of the Cato Institute says educators do accept the fact that different groups start at different levels. But he says Florida's approach is the wrong one.
"People who are upset over what Florida's doing have a good reason to be upset," he declares. "If you set different levels by race, than where's the impetus for the schools to bring all kids regardless of their race to their highest possible level?"
He says empowering parents and treating students as individuals remains the best course of action.
"That's why you need to attach money to individual children, giving educators the freedom to start schools -- private schools, homeschooling, things like that -- and for parents to be able to choose any of those options based on the unique needs of their kids," McCluskey tells OneNewsNow.
No Child Left Behind mandates that all students, regardless of race or economic situation, must achieve full proficiency in basic skills by 2014.