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WASHINGTON - The nation's schools, under deadline to get a top teacher in every core class, have won some wiggle room in areas where the task hasn't survived a collision with local reality.
Rural teachers, science teachers and those who teach multiple subjects will get leeway in showing they are highly qualified under federal law, the Education Department said Monday.
Perhaps the biggest change will be in rural, isolated regions, where thousands of teachers will get an extra year - until spring 2007, three years from now - to show they are qualified. New rural teachers will get three years from their hire date.
The easing of rules is the latest effort by the Bush administration to show it is trying to answer the biggest concerns about the No Child Left Behind Act without weakening the law. Critics have said for months that the law makes some teaching jobs even harder to fill.
"We listened to educators from across the country, and we learned," Education Secretary Rod Paige said.
The law is at the center of Bush's domestic agenda, and his officials face a public relations challenge as more schools pop up on "needing improvement" lists, state leaders talk of federal intrusion and congressional Democrats complain of shaky enforcement.
All states must have highly qualified teachers in all core subjects, from math to history, by the end of the 2005-06 school year. "Highly qualified" means teachers must have a bachelor's degree, state certification and proven knowledge in their subjects.
Yet in practical terms, some schools have found the requirement exasperating, particularly for teachers who handle multiple subjects. To show they are competent in their subjects, current teachers must pass a test in each topic, hold a college degree in that field or meet a standard set by their state.
Now, rural teachers will have extra time to prove they are qualified in all their subjects, provided they are highly qualified in at least one subject and get training in the others. The change will affect an estimated one-third of districts.
In another change, states can allow science teachers to show they are highly qualified in the broad field of science - not necessarily in chemistry, biology, or every field of science they teach. States can decide whether to require mastery of individual science disciplines.
The third change is more procedural. States must set a standard that current teachers can meet to show they are qualified in each subject without having to take a test or get a new degree. The new guidance says that teachers of multiple subjects don't have to go through this state evaluation process for each topic; just once is fine if states choose.
The law also does not spell out specific penalties for states that don't get a top teacher in every core class by the deadline. Department officials say they will recognize those that make good-faith efforts, but they warn of withholding money for those that don't.