National Standards and Assessments: Will They Improve Education?

National standards and assessments have been promoted as a means for upgrading curriculum and student performance in schools. This article argues that they are unlikely to have that effect for several reasons: First, top-down specifications of content linked to tests cannot take into account the many pathways to learning that will be appropriate for different students in schools across the country. Second, school communities must undertake their own hard work on standard setting and consensus development if they are to become committed to and knowledgeable about change. And, finally, large inequalities in opportunities to learn are more responsible for learning gaps than a paucity of tests. Standards and tests have already proved themselves to be an ineffectual means for leveraging resource equalization. Inequalities in learning opportunities must be addressed head-on if they are ever to be successfully removed. The article argues that, instead of starting with content and performance standards, policies should aim to create a system in which improved teacher knowledge and equalized school capacity are the starting points for systemic change. In such a system, teachers and schools will have the knowledge, resources, and organizational supports to create appropriate curriculum and useful assessments for the students they serve.