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by Audrey W. Prince M.Ed.
The No Child Left Behind Act was in effect from 2002-2015. It was
replaced by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Please see
Handy Handout #424 for more information about ESSA.
On January 8, 2002, President Bush signed into law the
No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which redefines the federal role
in K-12 education. NCLB is a reform of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act (1965). It requires
accountability for all children regardless of poverty, race/ethnicity,
disability, or limited English proficiency (LEP) and is designed to close
the achievement gap between disadvantaged, disabled, and minority
students, and their peers. NCLB is based on four principles: making
schools responsible for student progress, putting an emphasis on using
teaching practices that work, giving parents options, and increasing local
control of school systems.
Nine Points to Know!
The Early Years
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Research shows that children who enter school with an understanding of
pre-reading skills, such as reading from left to right and top to
bottom, have more success in school. NCLB provides resources to help
children in the early years.
Information for Parents
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Student progress must be measured yearly for grades 3-8 in reading and
math. States must provide parents with information on their child's
progress (state testing results). • Each state selects which test to use
in order to measure student progress.
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Each state selects which test to use in order to measure student
progress.
Alerting Parents
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States must give parents easy-to-read timely information on individual
school and district progress (school report card).
Helping Parents
- Schools are required to use federal money to make improvements.
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For schools that have poor progress year after year, parents might have
the option to transfer their child to a higher-performing school or
receive supplemental education services, such as tutoring, after-school
programs, or remedial classes.
Testing & Information
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Schools must test yearly to provide information about student's
strengths and weaknesses (for grades 3-8).
- Classroom teaching should help students meet or exceed standards.
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Principals must use the information to hold teachers accountable for
student progress and help improve the school.
High Teacher Quality
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Teachers of core academic subjects (math, language arts, science, and
social studies) must meet guidelines for the highly qualified status by
the end of the 2005-2006 school year. Giving More Resources ($) to
Schools.
Giving More Financial Resources to Schools
- NCLB has increased federal funding by 59.8%.
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Also, Title 1 grants for disadvantaged schools have increased 33%.
Allowing State Control of Money
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NCLB gives states and local education agencies control of how federal
money is used.
Focus on What Works
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Importance is put on using educational programs and practices that have
been demonstrated to work (research-based). For example, the Reading
First program is designed to strengthen reading skills in the early
grades and has been proven to work.
Resources
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