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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- South Carolina will delay until February a request for a waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind law.

The state Education Department had planned to request the break from the federal law in November. Agency spokesman Jay Ragley said Monday that will give the agency more time to gather data and see how other states file their requests.

The 2001 federal law requires every child in America's public schools to test proficient on state-standardized tests by 2014, regardless of race, poverty, disability or ability to speak English.

South Carolina wants to use an alternative evaluation system that gives schools credit for progress toward meeting goals.

Ragley said the state wants to rely on a strong accountability system the Legislature mandated in 1998 that measures student achievement.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)