By Maria Glod
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, November 7, 2008 7:30 AM

Reshaping the federal role in America's classrooms won't be the first priority for a new leader faced with economic crisis and war. But President-elect Barack Obama has vowed to fix "the broken promises of No Child Left Behind."

Those fixes to the landmark 2002 law enacted under President Bush will affect millions of students and teachers. Efforts in Congress to reauthorize No Child Left Behind had stalled in the past year as lawmakers waited for a new president. That left education advocates with a long to-do list. So as Obama selects an education secretary and crafts his priorities, plenty of people are lining up to make sure their groups -- or at least their ideas -- have influence with the incoming administration.

"This is an incredible opportunity to begin to correct the failed education policies of the Bush administration and prepare our students to compete in a 21st century economy," National Education Association president Dennis Van Roekel said after Obama's election.

The teachers union leader added a pitch for more federal dollars for

schools: "Obama has said that a cornerstone of any long-term economic plan must be an investment in quality public schools," he said.

Among the names tossed about in education circles as possible successors to Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, New York City Schools Chancellor Joel Klein and Chicago Public Schools Chief Arne Duncan are frequently mentioned. So are experts who took on public roles as advisers to Obama's campaign: Stanford University education professor Linda Darling-Hammond; and Jon Schnur, co-founder of New Leaders for New Schools, who was an education adviser in the Clinton White House.

The Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a D.C.-based think tank, is even running a "Name the Next Secretary of Education" contest. Three winners will walk away with a book on education reform. The institute has tossed out Duncan, Schnur and former North Carolina governor Jim Hunt as possibilities. Other pundits have even mentioned former secretary of state Colin Powell, who has been active in efforts to reduce high school dropouts.

The next education secretary will be key to Obama's promise to reform the No Child Left Behind law, which brought an unprecedented federal foray into public schools with a massive expansion of testing. The law passed with broad bipartisan support, but people on both sides of the aisle have soured on it, complaining about the quality of tests, the "pass-fail" system of judging schools and a focus on reading and math that some say neglects history, the arts and music.

Obama has said he wants to add $18 billion in funding for schools and dramatically expand access to preschool. On his campaign Web site, he said "teachers should not be forced to spend the academic year preparing students to fill in bubbles on standardized tests." He promised to "improve NCLB's accountability system so that we are supporting schools that need improvement, rather than punishing them." He also indicated that he could support merit pay programs designed in concert with teachers.

Translating those big ideas into the nuts-and-bolts of policy will be a painstaking process.

Lawmakers, guided by input from educators, activists and experts, will face tough decisions. Should the law stick to its strict focus on math and reading achievement to judge each school's success? Or should schools get credit for achievement in other areas?

There is a push to include efforts to boost high school achievement and ensure students graduate ready for college.

Even the definition of what makes a test could be up for debate.

Obama's advisers have said he would support expanded use of so-called portfolio tests. While traditional exams provide a snapshot of a student's performance, portfolios are a collection of a student's work over time. But some argue they are not a good way to measure and compare achievement.

Democratic gains in Congress won't necessarily make it any easier to redraw education policy. Support and opposition to No Child Left Behind doesn't split along party lines.

The two key teachers unions, the NEA and the American Federation of Teachers, are pushing for changes in a law they contend is too rigid. But some of the law's staunchest advocates are civil rights groups, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the National Council of La Raza, which worry that too many tweaks will weaken a law that has forced schools to focus on minority students.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), whose endorsement boosted Obama in the Democratic primary, was among the law's architects.

The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development issued a statement reminding Obama of campaign commitments. "As a candidate, he pledged to address the lack of funding allocated to fulfill the requirements of NCLB and proposed programs to recruit, prepare, retain, and reward teachers," Executive Director Gene R. Carter wrote.

The National School Boards Association, applauding Obama's promise to expand preschool and his focus on ensuring teachers are well-qualified, said it looks "forward to actively supporting President-elect Obama and his transition team in laying out a vision for education that conveys to the American people a new role for the federal government."