McREL policy brief reports outcomes of community conversations on leaving no child behind

April 27, 2005

Aurora, Colo. — A new policy brief from McREL reports findings from the National Dialogue Standards-based Education, a four-year project that engaged hundreds of participants nationwide in community conversations about what it will take to help all children achieve high academic standards.

Some key findings reported in the brief, titled Fulfilling the Promise of the Standards Movement, are as follows:

. Accountability based on test scores does not have the same value for the public as it does for policymakers;

. Parents are considerably more tolerant of variance in outcomes for their own children than accountability policies allow;

. The public appears to have a very different agenda for school reform than policymakers;

. Current accountability systems may be widening the rift between the public and public schools.

The brief's authors, McREL Director of Policy Initiatives Laura Lefkowits and Senior Consultant Kirsten Miller, note that, "the public no longer questions the wisdom of standards, assessments and accountability per se. But it is not only academic success that is on the minds of the public, especially parents. Dialogue participants expressed deep concern about students' civic mindedness, sense of caring for others, flexibility and adaptability, work ethic and creativity."

Thus, they recommend that policymakers consider developing accountability systems based on multiple indicators and work with the public to reform the education "system in ways that will allow individual students to develop their own potential while holding the adults in charge accountable for creating the opportunities for them to do so."

In conclusion, they note that participants in McREL's national dialogue (www.nationaldialogue.org) repeatedly raised questions about the fundamental purpose of the nation's education system, particularly in light of the rapid pace of change and burgeoning knowledge and skills students will need to thrive in the 21st century. In response to these concerns, McREL will shift the National Dialogue to a new frontier - one that focuses on describing the face of standards-based education in the year 2015.

Free copies of the brief are available for download at www.mcrel.org/topics/productDetail.asp?productID=204.

McREL is a nationally recognized, private, nonprofit organization located in Aurora, Colo., dedicated to improving education for all students through applied research, product development and service. Its staff of highly respected educators and researchers focuses on providing educators and policymakers with the highest quality, field-tested, research-based products and services available in PreK–16 education.