As students return to class this month, the debate over how to help failing schools rages on.

In a Gallup opinion poll, Americans consistently ranked education as the top issue needing President Bush's attention -- 63 percent said they were unimpressed with the nation's schools, giving them a score of C or less.

In January, President Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) that holds K-12 public schools accountable to higher national standards than before.

This law has deeply affected schools around the country. In states like Florida, Texas, Colorado and Maryland, classes started weeks earlier than usual. Throughout the coming year schools will be trying out different ways to accomplish the same goal: improving test grades.

Testing

The primary focus of the No Child Left Behind Act is accountability and making sure schools meet certain standards. According to the law, the government intends to test the schools by testing the students.

The issue of school testing raises strong feelings on both sides. The side in favor says that testing students is the best way to compare schools and measure improvement.

The opposing side says that testing encourages students and teachers to focus on test taking rather than other kinds of learning.

School transfers

NCLB also gives parents more options. The act focuses especially on children in "failing" schools -- often in poorer communities. The Bush administration believes students attending failing schools should be able to transfer to better schools.

The new transfer law has hit a few snags. Parents in some communities are finding that there isn't enough room for their children in the better schools.

And in some places, the children transferring to better schools are not the students who need the most help.

More options

Some students have transferred to charter schools. These are public schools that operate independently from the traditional public school system.

Charter schools receive public funding based on the numbers of students who attend, but are free to try innovative new education methods.

However, these new schools must still maintain a government-approved level of performance. Charter schools in the U.S. have grown from one to 2,400 over the past ten years, suggesting that they are achieving a certain level of success and popularity.

Controversial ideas

Other ideas in education reform have sparked a great deal of debate. Some states are experimenting with school vouchers that give parents a certain amount of public money to spend toward tuition at a school of their choice.

Supporters of vouchers, like President Bush, say they give low-income parents a chance to send their children to better schools. But opinion polls show that most Americans believe vouchers funnel money away from the public schools that need it most.

Other districts are considering turning schools over to a private company to manage reforms. Philadelphia has hired the Edison company to run its public schools, an experiment that many states will be watching closely.

No one can predict how more tests and higher standards will affect your school experience. If you would like to write about the changes you see as the school year progresses, please click here to become a NewsHour Extra school correspondent.

-- Contributed by Emily Birr