State Releases Schools On Alert From No Child Left Behind

"No Child Left Behind" is the federal law that mandates schools meet specific test score requirements by the 2013-2014 school year. Some Arkansas schools aren`t meeting those requirements, according to a list the Arkansas Department of Education released late Wednesday afternoon. News 4 Arkansas` Mike Hellgren talked to the department`s assistant director to answer some commonly asked questions about the law. Here`s what Janinne Riggs had to say: "The standard has changed. We are under a more rigorous standard that schools must meet." Should parents worry if their child`s school is on the improvement list? "If I were a parent in a school placed on the proposed school improvemment list, I would want to ask some very specific questions. What is the school doing to remove itself from the list? What type of progress have we been making over the years." Are Arkansas schools already on the improvement list making progress? "For some of our schools, they are making great progress, but not just fast enough, so I think, given a little more time, they`re going to be removing themselves from the list." Is "No Child Left Behind" working in Arkansas? "It`s gotten the attention of everyone. We`re finding out that accountability is with us. It`s not going away. We do have an obligation as professional educators to educate all our children to the best of our ability and make sure that they succeed." The full list of schools is on this website. Click on "As Seen on 4."