Ohio receives waiver from No Child Left Behind law

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - The federal government has approved Ohio's request for relief from certain requirements of the Bush-era No Child Left Behind Act.

In a decision Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Education granted Ohio and seven other states waivers from many provisions of the decade-old law.

Ohio schools will no longer be judged on yearly progress toward making 100% of students in each demographic group proficient in reading and math. The mandate was considered unrealistic. The Ohio Department of Education expected 90% of schools to miss the mark without the waiver.

State Superintendent Stan Heffner said Ohio's new school rating system will be more workable and as aggressive at shrinking performance gaps between children of different income levels.

The waiver also allows Ohio school report cards to shift to letter grades.

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