High Standards for Whom? Gratz, D.B. Phi Delta Kappan, Vol. 81, No. 9, May 2000.

This commentary takes a critical view of politicians'; motives and roles in education reform. In general, according to the author, education reforms in the United States tend to follow a pattern: descriptions of problems are more compelling, complete, and accurate than their proposed solutions; reforms over-promise and under-deliver; even good ideas often fail when implemented on a large scale; and reforms are driven by politics rather than by what is known to work in the classroom.

The standards and accountability movement, like other reforms, is distorted by poor implementation and political opportunism, says the author. While the education system requires time for careful implementation of new reforms, politics requires decisive action. In the politically expedient rush to implement tough tests and standards, professional standards for developing and using academic standards and assessments have been compromised. This has led to a number of unintended consequences, including more stress for students and teachers, increased student retention, greater inequities between the education haves and have-nots, and a growing resistance to the standards and accountability reform movement. Signs of rebellion are apparent, says the author, as illustrated by the increases in the incidences of cheating on tests (by both students and teachers), cheating on test reporting, lawsuits over and boycotts of high-stakes tests, and public outrage over policies such as the elimination of recess in the name of increased classroom time.

The author contends that the standards and accountability movement has merit. However, if it is to survive as a reform and actually improve schools and increase student achievement as was intended, then it must be reconnected with the basic principles behind academic standards, testing, high stakes, and equity. For example, standards should identify what students should know and be able to do, address only the essentials, and be clearly communicated to all education stakeholders. Tests must be valid, reliable, and fair. Major educational decisions, such as promotion or retention, should not be based on a single test score. And accountability systems should emphasize improvement of individual student performance, not school-to-school comparisons. It is up to educators, parents, and the public, says the author, to demand that policy makers realign the standards and accountability systems they have implemented to adhere to these basic principles.

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