Report: Federal Sanction Not Effective

A Call to Restructure Restructuring:

Lessons from the No Child Left Behind Act in Five States

This report synthesizes findings from CEP’s research on how the No Child Left Behind Act’s school restructuring requirements are being implemented in Michigan, California, Maryland, Ohio, and Georgia.

"This report shows that current restructuring policies and practices are flawed," said Jack Jennings, CEP’s president and CEO. "Many restructuring schools have done everything the law requires but they still haven’t raised achievement enough to exit restructuring. It’s time to revamp the sanctions and supports for these struggling schools."

Document reviews and interviews with state officials were conducted in the five states, and case study research was carried out in 19 districts and 42 schools.

Among the report's findings are that

• more schools have entered restructuring and many remain in that status for multiple years;
• the "any other" restructuring option is the most popular option in the states studied; and
• the five states varied greatly in the supports they offered restructuring schools.