Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
No Child Left Behind Act
open-in-new
<p>The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) was a 2002 U.S. <a href="/facts/Act_of_Congress/CE4cpsgt">Act of Congress</a> promoted by the <a href="/facts/Presidency_of_George_W._Bush/n3TPjCeF">presidency of George W. Bush</a>. It reauthorized the <a href="/facts/Elementary_and_Secondary_Education_Act/IDBlHpIo">Elementary and Secondary Education Act</a> and included <a href="/facts/Title_I/IDBlHpIo">Title I</a> provisions applying to disadvantaged students. It mandated <a href="/facts/Standards-based_education_reform/e3PwM6b1">standards-based education reform</a> based on the premise that setting high standards and establishing measurable goals could improve individual outcomes in education. To receive federal school funding, states had to create and give assessments to all students at select grade levels. </p><p>The act did not set national achievement standards. Instead, each state developed its own standards. NCLB expanded the federal role in public education through further emphasis on annual testing, annual academic progress, report cards, and teacher qualifications, as well as significant changes in funding. While the bill faced challenges from both Democrats and Republicans, it passed in both chambers of the legislature with significant bipartisan support. </p><p>Many provisions of the act generated significant controversy. By 2015, bipartisan criticism had increased so much that a <a href="/facts/Bipartisan_Congress/U3k2xDP8">bipartisan Congress</a> stripped away the national features of No Child Left Behind. Its replacement, the <a href="/facts/Every_Student_Succeeds_Act/IvE9JowC">Every Student Succeeds Act</a>, turned the remnants over to the states. </p>