No Child Left Behind (NCLB)

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), enacted in 2001 in the United States, aimed to improve educational outcomes for all students by increasing accountability in schools. It required standardized testing to measure student progress, established performance metrics for schools, and sought to narrow achievement gaps among different groups. Schools that didn’t meet specific targets faced consequences, such as restructuring or funding penalties. The intent was to ensure that every child, regardless of background, received a quality education. NCLB was replaced in 2015 by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which shifted some control back to states.