This year, education commissioner Christine Jax and the teachers union, Education Minnesota, are asking the Legislature to postpone full implementation of the Profile for two years. Others may propose scrapping the Profile altogether. Most reporting on the standards has focused on the debate in political arenas, so Minnesota Public Radio sent a trio of reporters into high schools to observe how teachers, parents and, most of all, students are coping with the graduation standards. The Profile Philosophy The Profile of Learning, once an idea, is finally finding its way into Minnesota's classrooms as a curriculum. The Birth of the Guinea Pig Curriculum Supporters say the new standards raise the rigor of education in the state.
Critics say the only thing they raise is the level of bureaucracy.
Many teachers find the state-written packages difficult to work with. Some students question the point. The First Test Thousands of seniors have repeatedly failed the math or reading basic-standards exams, and are now in danger of not getting their diplomas. The number of recent immigrants and special-education students is growing in Minnesota. A high school diploma may still remain out of reach for many of them.