July 25, 2008
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No Child Left Behind Act


Improve the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, initially authorized in 1965 as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), was signed into law on January 8, 2002 as a means of holding states, school districts and schools more accountable for improving the academic performance of each student regardless of economic status, race, ethnicity, proficiency in English or disability. The law requires states to:

  • Establish rigorous academic standards;
  • Conduct annual assessments at specific grade levels with at least a 95% participation rate;
  • Implement a comprehensive accountability system that includes extensive data collection and public reporting on student and school performance;
  • Direct formal sanctions against Title I schools and their school districts for failing to meet proficiency targets in reading and math; and
  • Establish new qualification requirements for teachers and paraprofessionals beyond the standards previously established by many states.

In establishing this federal framework for accountability, NCLB provides states discretion to: 1) establish content and performance standards; 2) select and operate assessment programs; and 3) establish requirements to monitor and report academic performance of groups of students who have traditionally not been performing at the desired levels.

Why is This Important to Your School District?

Local school districts and states need federal funding to supplement their own state and local community funding. This is particularly true in implementing additional federal program requirements on public education and in addressing some of the national concerns that extend beyond the capacity of states and local communities. Examples include public education services for students in poverty, students with disabilities, and students not proficient in English.

What to Tell Congress: NSBA's Position

Local school board members and other stakeholders need to tell members of Congress that the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act established a rigorous but theoretical accountability system for the nation's public schools. Unfortunately, what has evolved in the name of accountability is a measurement framework that bases its assessment of school quality on a student's performance on a single assessment; and mandates a series of overbroad sanctions not always targeted to the students needing services, and, to date, not yet proven to have a significant impact on improving student performance and school performance.

Local school board members need to tell their members of Congress that after five years of enactment of the federal law, local school districts continue to struggle to comply with the language of the law at a time when the unintended consequences of this complex law are imposing far more dysfunctional and illogical implementation problems than had been anticipated by the sponsors of the legislation. Additionally, federal and state lawmakers have become increasingly aware that successful attainment of the desired national goals is very much dependent upon the capacity of the state departments of education and the capacity of local school districts.

What's Happening Now in Congress?

Recent meetings with congressional committee staffs indicate that both House and Senate committee bills to reauthorize ESEA/NCLB could be introduced in early March before the Spring Recess.  Congressional support for NSBA’s recommendations to improve NCLB continues to grow.  Representatives Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-OH-11), Tim Murphy (D-PA-18) and Ed Pastor (D-AZ-4) are the latest co-sponsors among the 28 Republicans and Democrats that have signed on as co-sponsors of H.R. 648, the NSBA-backed No Child Left Behind Improvements Act of 2007, which includes more than 40 provisions for improving the law based on feedback and input from school boards throughout the country. NSBA continues to urge Congress to reauthorize ESEA / NCLB in 2008 and ensure that the provisions in H.R. 648 are included.

Contact Us

If you are a school board member or state school boards association staff member, please contact Kathleen Branch, NSBA's Manager of Federal Advocacy Programs at kbranch@nsba.org.

If you are a Congressional staffer or a member of the media, please contact Reginald Felton, NSBA's Director of Federal Relations at 703-838-6782 or by e-mail at rfelton@nsba.org.

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We want to hear from you! Send an e-mail to Kathleen Branch, NSBA's Manager of Federal Advocacy Programs at kbranch@nsba.org.


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