However, what administrators and teachers are discovering is that mandating high standards does not, by itself, raise achievement. Furthermore, current assessments such as standardized tests are not adequate for measuring those new standards. Given the skills our students will need to compete in today's economy, many of us can appreciate the need for higher graduation requirements for all students. For too many years, educators and parents have not had high enough expectations for urban and poor rural students, or even for some students in affluent suburbs. Still, there is concern that some students may not be able to reach those new learning standards on the tight timetables set by many states-even where transitional safety nets such as lower passing scores are temporarily in place.
Students come into schools with very different backgrounds and preparation.
Some face incredible hardship as they and their families grapple with poverty, illness, or other problems. Some do not learn well within traditional classrooms. Others need alternative approaches, more individual attention, or more time to master a subject. As schools have developed different instructional programs to teach students who don't do as well in traditional classrooms, we have learned that many students are capable of achieving much more than we had believed. Such programs, however, require extra time and resources so that faculty members working in smaller classes can develop and modify new curricula and instruction to produce good learning as well as acceptable results on new state exams.