So NCLB set up a goal, that 95% of students would be a good standing levels by 2012. To accomplish this the federal government put in Adequate Yearly Progress standards, and that if a school didn't improve year to year it would have to start making specific changes.

It is this point where NCLB has been called an "unfunded mandate" meaning there were these very lofty goals, but not enough funding to really drive the goals (goals=AYP). Federal funding did increase, but many argue that it was not nearly enough for the continual improvement the federal government wanted to see. This point about being an unfunded mandate is still debated, but I think the results of NCLB speak volumes. The goal was to be proficient by 2014, and that has not happened.

Basically underfunded schools with bad performance, comparatively stayed underfunded for the new goals mandated. They might have gotten more money, but many just thought it was a drop in the bucket compared to the demands the federal government had.