Every student shouldn't be on the same page at the same time. Every student shouldn't know exactly the same stuff because every student isn't interested in the same stuff and we are a very diverse nation that can benefit from a diversity of knowledge in each student. Standards are not for students, make no mistake about it. Students don't benefit from higher standards. The more standards there are, the less freedom there is for each student to pursue what interests them.
Standards are for school administrators and politicians.
They make the people who run the system happy because they can pat themselves on the back about what a good job they are doing because students have done well on a particular test, when in fact they have accomplished nothing at all. Because he thinks maybe you will elect him president if reading scores are up. Never mind that they are probably up because a few school districts intimidated their children into learning a few more antonyms. I don't think so. I just hope that the New York State Board of Regents sticks to its guns and doesn't tell anybody what they need to know.