Stumping for Standards
Two recent surveys by the nonpartisan foundation Public Agenda found that a vast majority of the general public, business leaders, and students support academic standards, descriptions of what all students should know and be able to do at specified grade levels. President Clinton has tapped into this general support for standards by proposing the adoption of voluntary national standards and reading and math tests. Not surprisingly, the president's proposal has met with wide approval. The American Association of School Administrators found that a majority of superintendents, administrators, and school board members support the proposal, and the Business Roundtable's education task force--chaired by the Lockheed Martin Corp.'s CEO, Norman R. Augustine--has declared its support as well.
Despite the strong consensus for standards, many people are confused about President Clinton's proposal to adopt the standards and tests. What are the standards? What did the president mean when he said that the standards would be "national, not federal"? Why are they voluntary? The president has suggested very straightforward standards: All students should read at grade level by the 4th grade and master basic mathematics and algebra by the 8th grade. The standards would be defined by national tests in 4th grade reading and 8th grade math. The standards would be national and not federal because they would be developed by experts in the field, not federal bureaucrats. Moreover, although every state and district would be encouraged to use the tests to assess all students, they would not be required to do so. Furthermore, the federal government would merely report the scores; states, districts, and schools would be free to use the information as they wished. Finally, President Clinton encourages states and districts to continue to create their own specific standards in reading, math, and other subjects.
Some people have also expressed concerns about the president's proposal. One concern is that national standards may hurt low-performing students, especially those in high-poverty schools. In fact, these students suffer the most in the absence of standards. Students in high-poverty schools often receive high grades despite low skills. A 1994 U.S. Department of Education study concluded that students in high-poverty schools who receive mostly A's in English read only as well as C and D students in affluent schools. Similarly, students receiving mostly A's in mathematics in high-poverty schools perform in math about the same as D...
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