Forum Bemoans Gap Between Standards and Classroom

By Lynn Olson

New York

Unless states move quickly to fill the void between academic standards and their use in classrooms, current efforts to raise student achievement could fizzle.

That was the message of a two-day conference, "Bridging the Gap Between State Standards and Classroom Achievement," held here March 20-21. The meeting brought together researchers on curriculum and professional development with educators, policymakers, and business leaders.

"It's much easier to put a testing program in place than to put in place a full program for kids," said Sandra Feldman, the president of the American Federation of Teachers and the Washington-based Albert Shanker Institute, a nonprofit think tank that...