Since President Lyndon
Johnson signed the Elementary and Secondary School Act (ESEA) in 1965, few
Americans likely paid more than scant attention to the federal government's
increasing role in education decision making. K–12 education was a longstanding
state and local responsibility, with more than 90 percent of the cost of public
school funding being provided by the states and districts. The federal
government reserved most of its authority to ensuring that its resources helped
disadvantaged children and those with special needs.
In 2002, President
George W. Bush reauthorized ESEA and renamed it the No Child Left Behind Act
(NCLB).
Suddenly everyone had an
interest in the government's expansive new role in education. NCLB required
states to conduct annual testing in reading and math for students in grades 3–8
with the tests requiring alignment with state academic standards. Adequate
yearly progress (AYP), the yardstick by which the law requires states to
measure how every public school and school district in the country is
performing academically according to results of the state's mandated tests,
became a household word, and sanctions are imposed each year for those schools
unable to demonstrate year-over-year gains in student proficiency. States are
now required to furnish annual report cards showing a range of information,
including student-achievement data broken down by subgroup and information on
the performance of school districts. Districts publish similar information on
their schools. In addition, all teachers in core academic subjects working in a
public school must be highly qualified in the subject matter they teach.
NCLB was originally
touted as a bipartisan success and lauded for highlighting the achievement gap
between white and minority and disadvantaged students and the need for high
standards and accountability measures. But as increasing numbers of schools
were labeled as "failing" despite making gains in achievement, many
educators and policymakers, even those who originally supported the law,
questioned the feasibility and fairness of its goals and time frames.
"NCLB turned
teachers and administrators against the law," said Jack Jennings,
president and CEO of the Center on Education Policy, a national, independent
advocate for public education and more effective public schools. "So many
schools are designated as not meeting AYP and there are not adequate resources.
States are cutting back on education funding. Teachers are being laid off.
Class sizes are increasing; extra aides are being let go. It's harder to
educate kids with less money, larger classes, fewer teachers; yet the demands
of NCLB go up every year."