Elementary Education Act 1870 further acts in 1876 ("the Sandon Act", which gave parents a legal obligation to ensure that their children were educated) and 1880 ("the Mundella Act") made attendance compulsory for children until they were 10 years old, with various exemptions. Many factory owners feared the removal of children as a source of cheap labour. However, with the simple mathematics and English they were acquiring, factory owners now had workers who could read and make measurements. Following continued campaigning by the National Education League, following the Elementary Education Act 1880, attendance to age 10 became compulsory everywhere in England and Wales. In
Raising of school leaving age January 2014, 23 states, Washington, D.C., American Samoa, and Puerto Rico require students to attend school until they are 18 or until they graduate high school. In two of these states, the requirement went into effect in July 2017. There are 11 states that require school attendance until age 17, while 16 states and the Virgin Islands only require schooling until age 16. Those states which have raised their minimum dropout ages above 16 may provide for exceptions with parental consent at ages 16 or 17. Further, most states have clauses allowing for graduation by students who manage to complete