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No Child Left Behind Act
Background
On January 8, 2002, the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 was passed by
Congress. This federal law contains the most sweeping changes to the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act (ESEA) since ESEA was enacted in 1965. NCLB also has
made the federal role in education more prominent than ever. It changed the federal
government’s role in kindergarten through grade twelve education by requiring schools
to demonstrate their success in terms of the academic achievement of every student.
With Title I as the cornerstone and students of greatest needs as the focus, NCLB
emphasizes stronger accountability for results, expanded options for parents, and an
emphasis on improving teacher quality. NCLB includes the following requirements:
• With academic content standards in place, states must test every student’s
progress toward those standards by using assessments that are aligned with the
standards. The law expands the current requirement that all schools administer
tests in each of three grade spans: grades three through five, grades six through
nine, and grades ten through twelve. Beginning in the 2005-06 school year, tests
must be administered every year in grades three through eight and once in grades
ten through twelve in mathematics and reading. Beginning in the 2007-08 school
year, science achievement must also be tested.
• Each state, school, and local educational agency (LEA) is expected to make
Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) toward meeting state standards. (An LEA is a
school district or a county office of education.) Test results are sorted to measure
the progress of all students, including students who are economically
disadvantaged, are from racial or ethnic subgroups, have disabilities, or have
limited English proficiency (see the Adequate Yearly Progress section for more
information).
• State, school, and LEA performance is publicly reported in report cards (see the
Accountability Report Cards section for further information).
• If a Title I school or LEA fails to make AYP for two or more consecutive years in
specific areas, it is identified for Program Improvement (see the Program
Improvement section for further information).
Adequate Yearly Progress
All schools (including charter, alternative, and small schools), districts, and numerically
significant subgroups are required to make AYP each year. California’s new definition of
AYP has four components. In order for any school or district to make AYP, the school or
district must have:
1. At least a 95 percent student participation rate in the statewide assessments
overall and for each numerically significant subgroup.
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