The Wyoming Senate has given initial approval to a bill that would rate schools on student performance.
The school accountability measure was amended by the Senate to say all schools that do not exceed pre-determined academic targets would have to develop improvement plans.
The House version of the bill said meeting targets was sufficient.
Senator Chris Rothfuss of Laramie says the Senate is shooting for a higher bar.
The State Senate has given initial approval to a plan to develop an energy and natural resource curriculum for Wyoming schools. The program will be based on a current agriculture curriculum that helps students learn more about that industry. Glenrock Senator Jim Anderson, a retired school teacher, says the curriculum will help students learn more about the biggest industry in the state. But some Senators are uncomfortable with the state dictating an industry curriculum for schools. Anderson pointed out that districts only have to adopt the program if they want to.
An effort to require all students to take four years of math will be considered by the State Senate. The Senate Education Committee recommended passage of the measure sponsored by Laramie Democrat Chris Rothfuss. He says too many students who go on to attend college either struggle or have to take remedial classes. The bill will require students to pass four years of math-based classes in order to graduate.
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan says Wyoming will receive $1.1 million to turn around its persistently lowest-achieving schools.
The money comes from the Education Department's School Improvement Grants program. The funds are part of $535 million provided through the fiscal 2011 budget and made available to states through the program.
