First Name:
Lillie
Last Name:
Blanton
Major Department:
Political Science
Thesis Director:
Mike Potter
Date of Thesis:
May 2013
In order to determine the effectiveness of the implementation of the federal No Child Left Behind policy in the Memphis City School District, a comparison was made of Memphis schools and those in the Davidson County School District, which includes metropolitan Nashville. Both of these cities have majority African-American student populations, and thus help to identify the achievement gap in Tennessee schools. The two districts were then analyzed and compared, revealing that the policies dictated by the federal government have been ineffective at promoting equity; the state of Tennessee has now been waived of NCLB regulations in order to bridge the gap between White and minority students. The changes in education policy at the state level are explained and analyzed and their effectiveness of equalizing the education system in Tennessee is predicted.