No Child Left Behind Act

NCLB | Testing and Achievement | Teacher and Paraprofessional Quality

Important Dates | NCLB Resources | Renton School District Title 1 Schools

No Child Left Behind

This page provides an overview of the federal law that affects the Renton School District and all public schools in the United States.

The overall goal of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act is to have all students – 100 percent – achieving at grade level by 2014. Between now and 2014, states, districts, and schools must take a series of specific steps toward that goal. The law requires that they focus intensively on rigorous academic standards in reading, math and science and tests based on them; accountability for the performance of every child; and the guarantee of a highly qualified teacher in every classroom. Although all schools are subject to NCLB goals and reporting requirements, only schools receiving Title I federal funds will be subject to specific requirements for corrective action, unless a state chooses to extend them to non-Title I schools.

Top of Page

Testing and Achievement

• States set specific scores, known as proficiency levels, on their reading and math tests. Washington state uses the WASL. As each state defines proficiency, the level of student knowledge and skills considered proficient varies from state to state. These should reflect state academic standards and curriculum aligned to them.
• States next set student performance goals – the percentage of students overall and the percentage of students in specific groups expected to achieve proficiency – based on test results from previous years.
• Student performance goals will be raised on a regular schedule between now and 2014 so that by 2014, all students – and all subgroups of students – will be performing at the proficient level.
• Test scores must be reported not just for schools, but also for specific groups within the schools: low-income students, those belonging to racial or ethnic minorities, students with disabilities or limited English proficiency, and several others.
• By 2005-06, states will test every student annually in reading and math from grades 3 through 8 and at least once in these subjects in grades 10 through 12. By 2007-08, states must test students in science at least once during grades 3-8, grades 6-9, and grades 10-12.
• Schools and districts must demonstrate annually that all students – and all groups of students – are meeting state goals for percentages of students performing at the proficient level to be counted as making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).
• Schools and districts will not be counted as making AYP if any one (or more) of the specific student groups misses the performance goal. It doesn't matter if the school misses the goal by a little or a lot, or by one group of students or many. All must meet the goals for a school to make AYP.
• If schools or districts do not make AYP for two years in row, they are considered “schools in need of improvement.”
• If schools in need of improvement receive Title I funds (federal support for high-poverty schools), special requirements apply to them. They are supposed to receive both financial and technical assistance and to develop and implement a school improvement plan. In addition, parents of students who are eligible will be able to transfer their children to other district schools or receive tutoring assistance.
• School improvement efforts must focus on programs and approaches that have research evidence to demonstrate their effectiveness.
• If schools receiving Title I funds continue to fall short of AYP, they will face more extensive changes over the course of several years, including possible restructuring, state takeover, or management by private firms.

Top of Page

Teacher and Paraprofessional Quality

• In every school, all teachers of core academic subjects (i.e., English, language arts, mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, history, and geography) must be “highly qualified” by 2005-06. Between now and then, every newly hired teacher must be highly qualified.
• “Highly qualified” teachers are defined by the law as those who hold at least a bachelor’s degree, are fully licensed or certified by the state in the subjects they teach, and can demonstrate competence in the subjects they teach.
• States must develop plans to ensure that all teachers are highly qualified by 2005-06, setting measurable goals for districts and schools. States and districts must report annually on their progress and on the percentage of teachers getting professional development to help them become highly qualified.
• Title I schools must notify parents annually that they can request information on their children’s teachers’ qualifications. Parents in these schools must also be notified if their child is taught for more than 4 weeks by a teacher who does not meet the law’s definition of “highly qualified.”
• Paraprofessionals newly hired after January 2002 must have two years of college or an associate’s degree, or they must demonstrate knowledge of and the ability to assist with reading, writing, and mathematics through a formal state or local assessment. Currently employed paraprofessionals have until 2006 to meet these requirements."