By Dr. Marciene Mattleman

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Looking back on the past year much has happened on the education scene.

No Child Left Behind, legislation heavy on test scores and punishment for those not making Annual Yearly Progress, from the Bush era, has yet to be reauthorized. The Obama administration has given waivers for other means of evaluating student progress.

The Common Core standards, assuring that students in California and Pennsylvania will work to reach the same benchmarks in English language arts and math are about to be adopted by most states. The emphasis is on instruction not testing.

With regard to immigration, those who entered the country before 16 up to age 31 and have lived here for 5 years and are either in high school, working on a GED, or in college have been granted 2 years grace under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Act. A good move!

We did not hear much from the candidates during the election campaign. There’s much to work on now.