Test results empower parents with information and control over their children's education. Without testing, some parents don't know their children's schools are failing their children. Some parents don't even know their children are failing. Those who oppose testing say that teachers teach to the test. But I say teachers teach those who are tested.
Tests provide irrefutable data about which kids are learning what, and in which classrooms.
And that's why we can't be afraid to test African American, Hispanic, and disadvantaged kids. To the contrary, we must test them so we can target the achievement gap, define it, and attack it with the full knowledge and support of our communities. The President's plan calls specifically for the disaggregation of state test data, and requires states to measure progress in closing the achievement gap as one of the criteria of statewide success. You know states are embarrassed to report student performance by race, because it's embarrassing to defend a system that sells black kids short. We want to expose that failure, and solve it.