A few states will be given more latitude to fix schools that fall short of the requirements under the national No Child Left Behind Law.

The federal law requires schools to test students in grades 3 through 8 every year to measure math and reading skills. Districts that fall short of specific standards have to take steps to bring underperforming schools up to grade, such as offering tutoring or a transfer to a better-performing school.

But critics have long objected to the rigidity of the law's requirements which do not allow enough flexibility in meeting the individual circumstances of schools and districts.

Federal officials are addressing that complaint by allowing Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Maryland and Ohio more freedom to design their own remedies under a pilot program announced by Education Secretary Margaret Spellings.

The expectation is a "closer fit between the causes of school underperformance and a focused attention at repairing those sources of failure," said Margaret Raymond, director of a think tank at Stanford University who chaired a panel reviewing state proposals.

Indiana will rely on testing throughout the year to identify academic weaknesses, rather than a single set of yearly tests. Maryland will put more emphasis on principal training to improve school leadership.

The six states were among 10 that will be chosen out of 17 which sought approval for pilot programs. New York is among those that have not been accepted.

The flexibility of the pilot programs allows states and individual schools to tailor programs to their needs rather than conform to one-size-fits-all solutions out of Washington.