March 24, 2019
In just a few months, families across Ohio will gather to celebrate one of life’s most cherished moments: high school graduation. It’s a time of year when students feel 10 feet tall as they walk proudly across the stage to receive their diplomas after 12 years of schooling. They and their families have good reasons for pride. Each diploma symbolizes a student’s hard work to meet Ohio’s challenging academic standards, requirements established by Ohio educators to prepare our young men and women for success in today’s world.
But are these standards — and the ways we measure them — working the way they should? That’s the center of discussions and debates among many Ohioans today about how to measure whether students are prepared to earn their diplomas. Should that preparation be measured by tests? If so, which tests? At what score levels? Are there other ways for students to demonstrate they are ready? Do these options ensure equity of expectations for all students? Are they valid and reliable? Can they be fairly and consistently implemented from district to district, school to school and class to class?