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Taking Stock Summary of a Workshop (1997) / Chapter Skim
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Standard-Setting as a Political Process
Pages 9-13

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From page 9...
... Poll respondents cited as reasons for their desire for higher education standards a "pervasive moral decay in American culture," a "widespread economic anxiety," and the view that "leadership is out of touch with the concerns of average Americans," although, of course, these are not problems that are addressed in any way by academic standards. Much of the discussion at the workshop strongly suggested that curing these ills is an unrealistic and inappropriate goal for education standards.
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From page 10...
... An understanding of the content and performance standards that are in place for high-achieving students around the world should surely inform a local search for standards, but simply imitating standards that have worked in one place would clearly not be an effective strategy because context is so important. Ruby joked that the term ~nternat~onai~y competitive" might be understood to refer to standards that are in competition with one another as documents.
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From page 11...
... His recommendation is that the United States needs to have a discussion of its economic and social goals in order to clarify the decisions that need to made about education standards. "There seems to be a lack of political agreement about the purpose of schooling" in the United States, he explained.
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From page 12...
... Noting that the United States had so far shied away from mandatory high-stakes assessments at the national level (though many exist at the state level) , Ruby pointed out that in the absence of a formal credential such as passage of a test, those in the business of choosing 12 TAKING STOCK: WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED ABOUT
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From page 13...
... In response to a question, Ruby explained that Australia was able to make the leap of committing to standards because of a combination of factors that sound strikingly familiar to American ears: economic pressure to prepare workers to compete in a service economy, pressure from the business community to increase the competence of secondary school graduates, and a political climate amenable to reform. Australia adopted content and performance standards that are context-specific, and so, he argued, should the United States.
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Key Terms

  • internationally competitive
  • education standards
  • specific purpose
  • content standards
  • academic standards

  • ruby remarked
  • continuing education
  • established purpose
  • australian example
  • exit exams

  • alan ruby
  • various components
  • thoughtful priorities
  • simply imitating
  • fundamental threat

  • school graduation
  • own goals
  • public discussion
  • economic pressure
  • public political

  • plan effectively
  • student achievement
  • nation produce
  • federal political
  • projected percentage

  • local search
  • poll respondents
  • secondary schools
  • challenging standards
  • surely inform


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