State Education Accountability Full of Hot Air
I thought this Education Sector analysis was very interesting. Their assertion is that many states have taken advantage of the autonomy provided by NCLB to “make their educational performance look much better than it really is.”
The analysis looks at which states are the most “optimistic” where their proficiency level on their state test varies most widely from results shown on the NAEP. They also discuss some of the more common methods used by State Departments of Education to fudge the numbers and get the results that they want.
What was most interesting is that California wasn’t on the top of the list. If we’re not the worst, I feel sorry for the citizens of those other states where they have even less of an idea of how well their students are doing.
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