The White House, President George W. Bush Click to print this document

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
January 9, 2006

Fact Sheet: No Child Left Behind - Strengthening America's Education System

Today's Presidential Action:

On The Four-Year Anniversary Of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), President Bush Traveled To North Glen Elementary In Glen Burnie, Maryland, To Discuss Efforts To Strengthen Education. President Bush discussed the Administration's commitment to strengthening America's education system, the progress made under NCLB, and the work that remains to be done.

With Passage Of NCLB, The Nation Made A New Commitment To Reforming Education. America is challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations; ending the shuffling of children through the system; and building an education system that prepares children for the demands of the global economy. The Administration is raising expectations and increasing accountability; giving local authorities more flexibility with Federal funds; requiring curricula based on proven methods of successful teaching; and giving parents options when schools fail.

NCLB Is Raising Standards And Ensuring That The Educational Progress Of More Children Than Ever Before Is Measured. The role of the Federal government is to insist on standards, provide resources, hold people accountable, and help school districts to meet standards. Under NCLB, schools that take Federal education money must show whether or not children are learning and whether or not expectations are being met. Because states are testing and measuring, we know NCLB is producing results as test scores go up and the achievement gap narrows.

Despite NCLB's Successes, There Is More Work To Be Done. No Child Left Behind is working, but we must continue to hold schools accountable. The Nation needs to improve its high schools and test students in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh grades. The President has proposed initiatives to improve education by, for example, having more math and science professionals serve as adjunct high school teachers and training more teachers for Advanced Placement courses. With these reforms, the quality of secondary education will improve and ensure that every student graduates from high school prepared to enter college or the workforce with the skills needed to succeed.

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