Difference between revisions of "No Child Left Behind Act"

Revision as of 09:27, 28 October 2017

The first major legislative initiative proposed by the Bush administration in 2001 reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. This new law, dubbed the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), has fundamentally altered the federal government’s role in education. The federal role now includes funding (it provides approximately 9 percent of the money spent on public education) and regulating the standards employed by states to evaluate student progress.

Receiving bipartisan support from Congress, NCLB expanded federal aid to schools to over $22 billion. The bill also requires states to establish standardized testing for students in grades 3–8. Students must show adequate yearly progress, or schools risk losing funding or being forced to reorganize. Parents will be given the option of seeking tutoring or transferring their children to other schools.

The standards used to measure student progress are set by the states subject to approval by the U.S. Department of Education. While the states will set the standards for reading, math, and science, the National Assessment of Educational Progress will assess state compliance and determine any sanctions to be imposed on those that fail. State progress will be reported to Congress by the U.S. secretary of education.

In order to implement this standards-based education policy, a significant amount of local control over educational standards has been ceded to the states and federal government. This represents a major shift for most states, which have traditionally permitted local communities to control education policy.

It is too early to fully assess the impact of NCLB. Preliminary data indicate that most states are struggling to comply with the act’s requirements and various organizations representing state and educational interests are pressing Congress to modify the act’s provisions.

Joseph R. Marbach

Last Updated: 2006

SEE ALSO: Education; Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965