Teachers also will need more resources than they now have, in the classroom and within the school, to intervene rather than shunt the poor performer off to special education classes and out of the loop. Indeed, annual testing might be the best way to put some heat on lackadaisical parents who treat school like day care. Chronic underperformance, annually highlighted and analyzed, will be a direct reflection on parents who remain detached or, worse, a negative force on their children's education. I can't do this alone. You need to help me at home.
Report cards do that for most conscientious parents.
But they don't pierce the attitude of the careless, particularly if poor performance can be blamed somehow on the school system. Systematic annual testing will help erase that excuse by clearly showing not only who is not working up to par, but who is not trying to catch up. People in the neighborhoods might even try to get something done, but too often residents don't know who to call. Or complaints fall into the quagmire of bureaucracy. They would be lead by people from the mayor's office and meet at least every two weeks.