No Child Left Behind and Science Education: Opportunities, Challenges, and Risks

Abstract

This article examines the opportunities, challenges, and risks that No Child Left Behind (NCLB) poses for science education in elementary and middle schools. Four areas of science education–standards, instruction, teachers, and curriculum–are discussed in the present context of NCLB accountability. Attention is given to how the current policy agenda affects science education and how this agenda may influence the teaching and learning of science for years to come.