The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 has led to efforts to improve the academic levels of children from the Fond du Lac Chippewa Reservation in Minnesota, an Indian education official says.

But it appears to have come at the expense of cultural activities. Vernon M. Zacher, a tribal member who is the director of Indian education for Cloquet Public Schools, says the law prompted a change in the way Chippewa children are educated.

"I couldn't have kids doing beadwork when they were reading two years below grade level," Zacher told The New York Times.

Other minority educators say the law has led to renewed focus on the needs of minority children. American Indian and Alaska Native children perform poorly on standardized tests, according to the Department of Education and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Get the Story:
School Law Spurs Efforts to End the Minority Gap (The New York Times 5/27)
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