She further suggests that I'm not a trustworthy spokesperson for low-income students since students at Mission Hill had reading scores on the Iowa Basic Skills third grade reading test that placed them below the state median. By this measure virtually all our students are fluent readers by the end of fourth grade. In crying wolf over Mission Hill's test scores, this member of the Massachusetts Board of Education endangers a success that ought to be getting some attention. The success of Mission Hill is a happy reminder of a time and place in our educational history when we were promoting professional judgment. For example, while going to a small school correlates with later success in school, it does not substantially raise test scores.
Smallness also correlates with school safety and a greater sense of personal efficacy.
How sad if we lose track of these in our relentless pursuit of test scores. I welcomed Bill Ayers' comments on behalf of our shared vision and his analysis of the impact of standardization on Chicago's neediest. Like Ayers, I know that our schools all need a jolt, and I suspect we both welcome such shocks even when they come in the wrong ways. Nathan's Fenway High School started up at the same time as Central Park East, and we gave each other encouragement and inspiration. She's probably right that what I'm proposing is not an alternative, but what we ought to see as the mainstream.