Volume 4, Number 1 (January - March 2009)

The performance of American students in schools is gaining more and more attention at the local, state, and federal levels. Beginning in the late 90s, the attention of many state legislatures and state boards of education shifted to school accountability. This shift remains prevalent. The performance and success of American students are linked to standardized testing. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation mandated standardized testing in several grades in several disciplines. Not only have accountability measures been mandated for students requiring satisfactory scores for promotions, measures are also in place for schools. Based on the performances of all students and several additional variables, schools are assigned school scores and are required to obtain Average Yearly Progress (AYP) (NCLB, 2008). The implementation issues coupled with the implications of NCLB directly align with educators and other vested stakeholders beginning to focus on variables that affect student achievement. Prior to NCLB, A Nation At Risk provided a framework for a similar focus. The implications of both legislations address issues pertinent to students and teachers in K-12 schools, and the implications in higher education focus on teacher preparation programs. ACCESS FULL MANUSCRIPT HERE: http://cnx.org/content/m20342/latest/