The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 has improved academic achievement in the U.S.

Thanks you for debating.This is the district/state/nationals topics from 2009 My first point is that the no child left behind act allows teachers and parents the resources they need to help children who are behind in learning, who need it most. This act tests the children in schools to make sure that they are learning. This is a useful tool, to see what areas kids are having trouble in, and what they can do to factor out the trouble, and implement the most time into the things that need the most work. For example, the MAP (Missouri assessment program) tests kids in various grades to see what level of learning they are in. I have received my scores and my parents and I can see the areas I am deficient in and we can target them to make those grades better, and make our school's progress percentage even better the next year. The score sheets give students examples on how to improve their learning, and what they should be most concentrated on. This is a great thing for parents to look at, and it's helpful to teachers, for them to see if their teaching is proficient enough. Robert E. Cleary, a professor of Public affairs at American university says" Congress appropriated 40% more money to support programs for needy and disadvantaged students under the title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act than is had appropriated in fiscal year 2001." This means the kids who need more help with learning, are getting it. Therefore more money has been implanted into the school systems to make sure they get focused attention on their specific needs. My second point is that with the NCLB act, schools are forced to focus more on the basic, critical skills, like math in reading. If the children who are deficient in these areas don't get immediate help when they are at the vulnerable young age, they might not be able to be helped later on in life. Math and Reading skills are skills we use every day in life. In the last two years with the NCLB act, the number of fourth graders who learned their fundamental math skills increased by 235,000. Also, forty-three states and the District of Columbia either improved academically or held steady in all categories. The skills are increased with the NCLB and the kids are getting a better understanding of the concepts, they can continue in success and be able to grow up and have a successful job, and future. This is a great benefit for kids today, to have the chance to study even harder in the areas they need, therefore increasing their knowledge and creating a better future. My third point is that with the NCLB act, schools are constantly being urged to improve their scores on state testing, such as the MAP test, which therefore makes it better for the districts, to get more funding for doing well, and more funding if they need improvement. Schools each year are required to take some sort of statewide testing to see what levels students are on to see if the school need better administrators, or they need to focus on a specific subject to improve on. This helps the schools because when they don't improve, they can see why, and they can get better teachers, who can help the students understand the specific subject better, and they can have a better learning experience. When kids get specifically focused on it raises their grade level and they are able to comprehend things much better. For example, results from test scores from 2003 to 2004 have increased, showing that the NCLB act is working. This is exactly what the resolution is asking for; the no child left behind act has improved academic achievement.