Report Says Many Schools Unlikely to Meet 'No Child' Benchmarks

A rising number of states are unlikely to meet math and reading proficiency benchmarks by 2014, as set out by the No Child Left Behind law, according to a new report from the nonpartisan Center on Education Policy. Schools that fail to meet these federal requirements will be forced to undertake measures such as individual tutoring, replacing staff and transporting students to higher-achieving schools -- all consequences that could put a major strain on already flagging state and district budgets.

In our Reality Check report on standards and testing, teachers are most critical of No Child Left Behind, with 7 in 10 saying the law is causing problems in their district. Very few principals and superintendents, on the other hand, name No Child as the most pressing issue facing them, though less than half (42 percent of principals, 44 percent of superintendents) think the law will actually raise student achievement. The public broadly favors standardized testing to measure academic performance -- as long as it’s not the only benchmark. Yet while most Americans have heard of the No Child Left Behind law and majorities even say it will improve education, nearly seven in 10 say they don't know enough to form an opinion.