The Supreme Court heard a case in which an evangelical group argued that it had a constitutional right to offer Bible study and prayer as an after school activity for young children on the same basis as any other activity held on the premises of an upstate New York public school. The case, Good News Club v. Milford Central School, has drawn wide attention because of its implications not only for religion in the public schools but also for a range of questions about the extent to which public institutions can, or must, open their doors to religious organizations on an equal basis with all others. While the Supreme Court has allowed various religious activities on public school property outside school hours, it has not addressed the role of religion as an after school activity for young children. If President Bush's proposal to test every child, every year in grades 3 to 8 is approved, the cost would skyrocket in states like Ohio. Ohio is among 35 states that would face the costly proposition of revamping their testing to meet the President's assessment proposal.
Most states limit testing because of cost and time.
Ohio Board of Education member Virgil Brown Jr., whose district includes Cleveland and much of Cuyahoga County, said he and other board members supported Ohio scaling back testing. Bush's proposal, which will be considered by the Senate Education Committee next week and the full Senate the following week, would also place a burden on the standardized testing industry. Just three companies develop almost all of the nation's standardized tests in grades 3 through 8, and a fourth company does most of the scoring. The 92-page plan proposes the most sweeping changes to the city's schools in years. Despite the district's decades-long commitment to equity in education, African American and Latino students significantly underperform when compared with white and Asian peers.