As Rodney Paige, former Secretary of Education, said, “We have an education emergency in the United States of America” (Hursh, 2007). The American ideal of egalitarianism essentially states that individuals should have equal opportunities to pursue their dreams, and an important part of being able to achieve this is getting a quality education. Students of different racial, cultural, socioeconomic, and ability levels should all have the same opportunities to receive a high-quality education. Unfortunately this is not the case. The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is trying to change this. NCLB is the current reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) (Houston, 2007), passed during the administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson. Every five years the ESEA is renewed. It is currently scheduled for renewal in 2014. In 2001, the ESEA was reissued as NCLB. He was put in power to improve the educational outcomes of disadvantaged students by implementing annual standardized tests in English, mathematics and, after 2007, also in science. Holds states, school boards, schools and teachers accountable to higher standards. Students will need to be 100% proficient in English and maths by 2014. As reported by Laura Chapman, some experts believe that up to 85% of schools will fail to meet the goal of achieving 100% proficiency in reading and mathematics by 2014 (2007). . States must meet annual adequate proficiency (AYP) rates, and if they fail to meet these rates for two consecutive years, penalties will begin to apply. Students could choose to leave that school for another school that meets their individual AYP rate or to receive free tutoring. In the most serious cases, schools that have no m...... half paper ......The failed promise of the "no child left behind" act. Race, Ethnicity, and Education,10(3), 295-308. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/62050783?accountid=14789Lee, J., & Reeves, T. (2012). Revisiting the impact of accountability, capacity, and resources of NCLB high-risk schools: NAEP state reading and mathematics achievement gaps and trends 1990-2009. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 34(2), 209-231. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1018478080?accountid=14789Milner, A. R., Sondergeld, T. A., Demir, A., Johnson, C. C., & Czerniak, C. M. (2012). Elementary school teachers' beliefs about science teaching and classroom practice: An examination of NCLB pre/post tests in science. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 23(2), 111-132. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1011395880?accountid=14789