Education

One Standard Does Not Fit All

March 19, 2009 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Renee Moore of TeachMoore was disappointed that President Obama chose to use the children of Mississippi as evidence that we need nationalized standards. A teacher in Mississippi, Moore says that while the problems are very serious, the causes of one state’s educational problems aren’t necessarily the same as another’s.

The comparison of the performance of fourth graders in Mississippi to those in Wyoming focuses attention on the symptoms, not the causes of educational inequity. The problem is NOT that the two states have differently written standards …
Average pay for teachers in Wyoming (5th in the nation) in 2006-07 was $50,771, while Mississippi teachers only averaged $40,182 (47th in nation). All of these disparities have their roots in Mississippi's sad history of racial discrimination and its sibling: opposition to progress.

Moore says that, as a result, the solutions that will work for one state won’t necessarily help another.

Improving the quality of education for all our children is a national priority, but a localized task. It requires the knowledgeable contributions of many parties, most notably the parents and teachers of a given state or community.

A version of this news article first appeared in the Blogboard blog.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
The Future of the Science of Reading
Join us for a discussion on the future of the Science of Reading and how to support every student’s path to literacy.
Content provided by HMH
Mathematics K-12 Essentials Forum Helping Students Succeed in Math
Student Well-Being Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: The Power of Emotion Regulation to Drive K-12 Academic Performance and Wellbeing
Wish you could handle emotions better? Learn practical strategies with researcher Marc Brackett and host Peter DeWitt.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Quiz Trump’s Surprise Freeze on School Funding—How Much Do You Know?
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz What Lowers Teacher Turnover? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz Which State Is About to Pass a ‘Science of Reading’ Law? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz What is a Project 2025 Author Doing at the Education Department? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read