Putting that money into schools friendly to neighborhoods makes sense. Effective schools tend to control their resources. Standards and accountability. Schools, teachers and principals used to be largely unaccountable for their results, however dismal. The new board must keep the momentum going.
Annual tests can be an effective accountability tool by providing a way to measure student progress.
So far, critics of tests have failed to suggest alternative ways the public can monitor how well students are meeting raised standards. Appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on May 5, 2001. Journal Sentinel Inc. All rights reserved.