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Standards-Based Reform

What Is Standards-Based Reform?

The standards movement in our country started in the late 1980s and gave rise to a sweeping approach called standards-based reform, or standards-based education. In this approach, the knowledge students are expected to acquire is defined in a set of standards. Teachers present a "standards-based curriculum" that enables students to acquire that knowledge. And there are standardized tests, aligned to the standards, that test for that knowledge.

Standards-based education operates on these three principles:

1. That there are agreed-upon standards of what all students should know.
2. That students are presented a curriculum that teaches what's in the
standards.
3. That there are standardized tests, aligned with the standards, that test for that knowledge.

What Are the Challenges?

Consider these complications in administering a standards-based system:

‘ Which standards should be used? National, state, or district?

‘ What mix of knowledge and reasoning skills should standards be based on?

‘ Which knowledge? State capitals? Phases of the Moon? The periodic table?

‘ Who chooses the standards?

‘ For which students¤all students, or only the best?

‘ What role should standards play? Should they be voluntary or required? For schools? districts? states?

‘ Do all students have an equal opportunity to learn?

‘ Are there good standardized tests aligned to standards?

While standards-based education may seem straightforward, it's anything but simple--something to keep in mind as you read about this kind of reform in the news. To read the actual standards for yourself, see our link to Science and Mathematics Standards.

Adapted from Spark Your Child's Success in Math and Science (GEMS, 2002)

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