WASHINGTON - Not a single state will have a highly qualified teacher in every core class this school year as promised by President Bush's education law. Nine states along with the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico face penalties.
The Education Department on Friday ordered every state to explain how it will have 100 percent of its core teachers qualified - belatedly - in the 2006-07 school year.
Meanwhile, some states face the loss of federal aid because they didn't make enough effort to comply on time, officials said. They are Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina and Washington, plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
"At some point there was, I suspect, a little bit of notion that 'This too shall pass,' " said Henry Johnson, an assistant secretary of education. "It's not going to pass."
The No Child Left Behind law says teachers must have a bachelor's degree, a state license and proven competency in every subject they teach by this year. The first federal order of its kind, it applies to teachers of math, history and other core classes.
Twelve other states are under review and haven't been rated: Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
No matter which category they are in, all the states must submit a new plan of action.
