History of IDEA
Jeannie Oakes, Founder and Former Director
Youth Voice in School Finance
NEW REPORT: Los Angeles' road to A-G for all
Without Dollars and Sense Powerpoint
Past Educational Opportunity Reports
No Child no more? Are GOP proposals to dump AYP a step forward or back?
- 09-22-2011
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Blog by Maureen Downey/Atlanta Journal Constitution
Depending on where you stand — outside a school or inside — No Child Left Behind either pushed public education to new heights or kicked it to the curb. Used by President George W. Bush as a cattle prod for greater student achievement, the 2001 law ramped up the federal role in schools and spawned a new lexicon of education acronyms, from AYP (adequate yearly progress) to NI (needs improvement). The landmark legislation had standardized testing as its engine, causing critics to charge that the law reduced U.S. classrooms into “drill-and-kill” labs where worksheets and practice exams edged out science fairs and hands-on learning. The unrelenting pressure to raise test scores caused educators in some schools, including many in Atlanta, to resort to cheating to mask disappointing AYP results. (more...)
Also: Washington Post
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