FYI: Public school watchdogs are keeping a close eye on what they predict are the first of many lawsuits spurred on by the No Child Left Behind Act. Last week, parents in New York and Albany sued city and state education departments for denying their children the right to transfer out of failing schools, a situation city school officials admit needs improvement. According to an Education Week profile of the case, this suit will lead to a landmark decision on whether the federal No Child Left Behind legislation allows parents to sue their school systems over the implementation of the program. (Parents’ lawyers claim that right is implied in the law, while some national observers say the law doesn’t explicitly offer such a remedy.) Meanwhile, parents in California are challenging the state’s definition of a “highly qualified” teacher, saying it doesn’t meet the new law’s standards. [2/5/03]