Just when you thought you knew the rules...

But that's not necessarily a negative, argues Rick Hess, assistant professor of education and politics at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, when dealing with a system that has always proved highly resistant to change.

"You can take the incrementalist tack," he says, "or throw the ball farther down the field and assume everybody's going to adjust."

The thinking, he says, was that "there is a window of opportunity. They made a calculated decision to go for what they could get."

But when it comes to details like determining which schools will be willing to begin taking children from failing schools this fall, "I haven't heard anywhere near enough conversation," says Kathy Christie, vice president of the Education Commission of the States in Denver. "Nobody's really prepared for this." However, she points out, "you have to start somewhere."

Students in schools that have performed poorly for two years may move to another school (about 8,600 schools qualify).

Teachers hired with Title I money (targeted at poor schools) must be "highly qualified," meaning they either have a degree in the field they teach or have passed a state exam.

Paraprofessionals and aides hired with Title I money must either have at least two years of college or have passed a state exam.

Title I schools must inform all parents if their child is taught for more than four weeks by an unqualified teacher.

All schools must have annual assessments of students with limited English, and biennial use of the NAEP (a national test) in math and reading for a sample of 4th- through 8th-graders.

States must distribute annual report cards assessing their schools.

Districts must deliver annual local report cards.

2003: All schools failing to show improvement for two years must allow their students to transfer to another school.

Parents with children in schools that have performed poorly for two years may request $300-1,000 in Title I funding to provide their child with a tutor or other supplemental educational services.

2004: All paraprofessionals and aides in all schools must either have two years of college or have passed a state exam.

2005: All teachers must be highly qualified (i.e., have a degree in the field they teach or have passed a state exam).

2005: States must test all students each year in grades 3 to 8 in reading and math, and at least once for grades 10 to 12.

2007: States must test all students in science at least once in elementary, middle, and high school.

2013-2014 school year: All schools, districts, and states must be making "adequate yearly progress" towards having all their students proficient in reading and math.

Two years of failure: Students can transfer, and the school must receive technical assistance from the district.

Three years of failure: Students can use Title I money for tutoring and other supplemental educational services.

Four years of failure: The school must do one of the following: replace school staff relevant to the failure; implement new curriculum including professional development; significantly decrease management authority at the school level; appoint an outside expert to advise the school; extend the school year or day; or restructure the school

Five years of failure: The school must significantly alter its governance method by allowing a state takeover; hiring a private management company, or converting to a charter school.

Sources: US Dept. of Education; Center on Education Policy

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