Is 'No Child Left Behind' to Blame for Poor Science Test Scores? - ScienceInsider

Is 'No Child Left Behind' to Blame for Poor Science Test Scores? - ScienceInsider

Is 'No Child Left Behind' to Blame for Poor Science Test Scores?

by Jeffrey Mervis on 25 January 2011, 1:59 PM | Permanent Link | 3 Comments

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U.S. students don't know much about science, according to the latest results from a national test releasedtoday. And one leading science educator says that a big reason for their poor performance is a 2002 federal law that has pushed the subject out of classrooms by emphasizing reading and mathematics.

"For 9 years, elementary school principals have been telling teachers not to teach science because it's not part of No Child Left Behind," says Francis Eberle, executive director of the National Science Teachers Association in Arlington, Virginia, referring to the 2002 law that requires annual testing of those students in grades three