About NCLB/ESEA
The most recent iteration of the 1965 Elementary and Secondary
Education (ESEA) Act, the No Child Left Behind law was signed
into law in 2002 and requires Congressional reauthorization in
2007.
The No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
law was intended to close achievement gaps and ensure that every
public school student is proficient in reading and math. The
Forum on Educational Accountability shares the law's objective
of strong academic achievement for all children and closing achievement
gaps. The signers of the Joint Statement "endorse the use
of an accountability system that helps ensure all children, including
children of color, from low-income families, with disabilities,
and of limited English proficiency, are prepared to be successful,
participating members of our democracy."
NCLB mandates annual tests
for students and puts in place a series of punitive actions for
schools and districts that do not meet annual targets for student
achievement. The law's emphasis needs to shift from sanctioning
schools that do not meet test score requirements and instead
provide states and localities with the resources and support
to improve student achievement. The Forum on Educational Accountability
recommends major changes to the assessment, accountability, and
sanctions provisions of the law.
The Forum on Educational Accountability
seeks full funding for the law. Since its passage, No Child Left
Behind has been chronically underfunded, shortchanging the educational
needs of our nation's neediest children. President Bush's 2007
budget falls an additional $15 billion short of the amount Congress
and the Administration authorized for NCLB in 2007. This shortfall
brings to $55 billion the total amount that NCLB has been underfunded
since the law was enacted.
