ABSTRACT
Many civil rights advocates initially hailed the Bush administration's major education bill, optimistically entitled No Child Left Behind (NCLB), as a step forward in the long battle to improve education for those children traditionally left behind in American schools, in particular, students of color and students living in poverty, new English learners, and students with disabilities. The broad goal of NCLB is to raise the achievement levels of all students, especially underperforming groups, and to close the achievement gap that parallels race and class distinctions. The biggest problem with the NCLB Act is that it mistakes measuring schools for fixing them. It sets annual test score goals for every school, and for subgroups of students within schools, that are said to constitute "Adequate Yearly Progress". Most important, schools that are struggling should receive intensive help to strengthen their staffs and adopt successful programs.
