No Child Left Behind Act: Pros, Cons, and Impact

Introduction to the No Child Left Behind Act

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) was formerly known as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which was enacted in 1965. Signed by President Lyndon Johnson, the ESEA provided monetary grants to local educational agencies to meet the individual educational needs of disadvantaged children. It also provided resources for libraries, academic research, state education departments, and related projects (Kafer, 2004). In January 2002, President George W. Bush signed a sweeping amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.

Widely recognized as the No Child Left Behind Act and ratified with bipartisan support in Congress, this legislation marked a significant departure in efforts at every level to raise the quality of public education (Ritter & Lucas, 2003). The Act requires states to test every student annually in grades 3 through 8 in reading and mathematics, to disaggregate scores by race, sex, English-language proficiency, disability status, and socioeconomic background, and to make that data publicly available (Kafer, 2004).

Congress anticipated that enacting No Child Left Behind would result in greater accountability for outcomes, more flexibility for schools, districts, and states in how they use federal funds, a wider range of educational options for families from disadvantaged backgrounds, and an emphasis on research-based teaching methods. The Act strongly stresses early literacy, raises the credentialing standards for teachers, and guarantees that every child attending school in the United States will be taught English (Jerry, 2003). Many regard NCLB as President Bush's most significant domestic education achievement, citing the nobility of its goals, while others — particularly at the local and school levels — have expressed serious reservations about its real-world consequences (Martin, 2004).

Supporting Viewpoints

Under the No Child Left Behind Act, advocates argue that parents of English language learners can expect: that their children receive a quality education from a highly skilled teacher; that their child is taught English and core subjects such as reading, language arts, and mathematics at the same academic level as all other students; and that they are informed if their child has been identified for an English language acquisition program, with the right to accept or decline enrollment. Parents may also select an alternative English language acquisition program, transfer their child to a different school if the current one is found to be in need of improvement, and request supplemental services such as tutoring if the school has been designated as "in need of improvement" for two consecutive years. Children are also subject to annual assessments to measure English language progress, and parents receive information on how their child is performing on academic assessments (Paige Outlines No Child Left Behind Act's Ten Key Benefits for Parents of English Language Learners).

Proponents argue that immigrants come to this country in search of a better life for their families. With No Child Left Behind, parents become more engaged in their child's academic progress, helping to fulfill the aspirations of both parent and child. Research cited by supporters shows that students who are unable to read or write in English have a significantly higher likelihood of dropping out of school and often face reduced opportunities throughout their lives. An improved standard of K–12 education will ensure that every child who aspires to attend college is academically prepared, providing greater flexibility and more choices for parents.

Under the Act's accountability provisions, states must explain how they will close achievement gaps and ensure that every student, including those with disabilities, attains academic proficiency. States must also publish annual report cards at the state and school-district level to inform parents and communities about progress. Schools that fail to make adequate yearly progress for two consecutive years must offer public school choice; after four years, they must take corrective action; and after five years of insufficient annual growth, they must make fundamental changes in how the school operates (Paige Outlines No Child Left Behind Act's Ten Key Benefits for Parents of English Language Learners).

A report published in March 2004 by the Council of the Great City Schools — a national coalition of more than 60 of the country's largest urban school districts — found that students in major urban schools had posted significant gains on statewide math and reading assessments following the enactment of NCLB. Additional state test results published for 2003–2004 showed students earning higher scores on state examinations. Although the full impact of No Child Left Behind had yet to be realized, parents had already begun to see encouraging results from its accountability and standards provisions (Boehner, 2004).

A nonpartisan report by the Education Commission of the States found that states were making progress in implementing the education reforms under No Child Left Behind. However, the report's authors cautioned that states still faced significant work to ensure every classroom had a highly qualified teacher by the 2005–2006 deadline. Among the findings reported by the Associated Press (Ben Feller, July 14, 2004): 98% of states were on track to define what constitutes a persistently dangerous school, enabling parents to transfer their children to safer schools; 92% of states were on track to publicly report disaggregated student performance data; 53% of states were on track to identify schools requiring improvement before the start of the new school year; and 22% of states were on track to place a highly qualified teacher in every classroom. More than 100 African American and Latino school district superintendents from across the country wrote to federal leaders expressing strong support for the Act and cautioning against weakening it, as had been suggested by the National Education Association and other critics. Together, these superintendents oversaw the education of more than three million American students (Boehner, 2004).

Proponents also point out that NCLB addresses learning difficulties at an early stage. Children who are proficient in the early grades tend to perform better in later years. Approximately $1 billion is allocated annually through the Reading First initiative to help states and local school districts establish high-quality, comprehensive reading programs for every child in kindergarten through grade three. Under the Act, every state tracks the progress of each child from third through eighth grade in reading and math, and parents receive report cards showing which districts are succeeding and why (No Child Left Behind Act Aims to Improve Success for All Students and Eliminate the Achievement Gap).

Parents also gain information about the quality of instruction in their child's classroom, how their child is progressing compared to peers, and the qualifications of their child's teachers. They receive alternatives when their child's school is not meeting expectations, including the option of transferring to a higher-performing school or accessing supplemental services such as tutoring, after-school classes, remedial instruction, or summer school. Additionally, federal education spending increases under NCLB, and teachers gain access to more data about each student's strengths and weaknesses to inform lesson planning and professional development. School districts also gain flexibility to redirect federal funding toward improving teaching practice, adopting new technologies, and maintaining safe, drug-free schools (No Child Left Behind Act Aims to Improve Success for All Students and Eliminate the Achievement Gap).