Feb. 9 marked an achievement in the education system when President Barack Obama waived 10 states from the strict requirements of the No Child Left Behind Laws passed in 2002 during George Bush’s administration. The No Child Left Behind Law requires that students be proficient in math and English by 2014, and that they demonstrate this proficiency through a statewide standardized tests. This causes problems for both students and educators, as educators are pressured to “teach to the test” in order to help their students pass. Thus, much of the creativity is eliminated from teaching.

            Under the waiver, states must show they are preparing their students for college and careers, set new targets for student achievement, and reward high performing schools and help lower performing ones. Rather than showing a school’s ability by test scores, they will now be judged on both the educators and students teaching and academic ability.

            The law has been up for renewal since 2007, but lawmakers have encountered difficulties on how to rewrite the laws and balance the amount of power the federal government has in public schools. Originally the law concluded that all students must be proficient in math and English, or risk consequences such as staff replacement or busing children to higher performing schools. This system is flawed, because some schools perform better than others simply because of demographics.

            While the No Child Left Behind Laws are widely regarded as George Bush’s most contested domestic accomplishment as a president, last September Obama called it “an admirable but flawed effort that hurt students instead of helping them.” With the waiver, the states may now focus more on individual students learning and less on the standardized test, benefitting students greatly in the future.