Principals’ Group Calls for National Academic Standards and Tests

A plan for adopting national academic standards and assessments in reading and mathematics, as well as for helping states and districts implement them, should be included in the reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act, a major education group says.

In a position statement released last month, the National Association of Secondary School Principals calls on Congress to appoint an independent panel of researchers, educators, and others to come up with a set of common guidelines for what students should know and be able to do in the two subjects at each grade level. The standards, and accompanying assessments, should replace punitive provisions in the federal law, the NASSP says.

“Under NCLB, we’re holding schools accountable, talking about adequate yearly progress, creating lists of schools not reaching AYP,” said Gerald N. Tirozzi, the executive director of the Reston, Va.-based organization. “The irony is that we have 50 states, which have 50 different definitions of proficiency, and NCLB never even describes what...