Thomas B. Fordham Institute - Advancing Educational Excellence

The State of State Standards 2006

August 29, 2006

by Chester E. Finn, Jr., Michael J. Petrilli, Liam Julian

* notes that states have updated these standards since our last review.

Two-thirds of schoolchildren in America attend class in states with mediocre (or worse) expectations for what their students should learn. That's just one of the findings of Fordham's The State of State Standards 2006, which evaluates state academic standards. The average state grade is a "C-minus"--the same as six years earlier, even though most states revised their standards since 2000.

Does this make the case for national standards? See our other new report, To Dream the Impossible Dream: Four Approaches to National Standards and Tests, to find out.

Read Chester E. Finn, Jr.'s August 31, 2006, testimony before the No Child Left Behind Commission on this topic.

Read the media release for both reports.

Contents

District of Columbia

PDF versionPDF version

*English-C

  • Reviewed: Reading/English Language Arts, K-12
  • Performance Standards, Essential Skills, and Technology
  • Integration

The District presents its English standards grade by grade and does a good job hitting most major areas, especially those pertaining to English language arts and reading. Unfortunately, although knowledge of sound/letter relationships is covered, it does not seem that it will be taught systematically and applied as a word identification skill independent of context. This is certainly problematic. Further, the document contains no indication that works of literature will be selected for study on the basis of their merit or their historical and cultural significance. Key authors and works of American literature are absent from the standards' pages. Such important information does not deserve to be overlooked.

Read the full report on the Distrcit of Columbia's English standards here.


*Mathematics-D

  • Standards for each of the grades Pre-K to 8, and for Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, and Advanced Placement Calculus
  • Standards for Pre-K to 8 (strands): Number and Operation, Patterns, Functions and Algebra, Data Analysis, Statistics and Probability, Geometry and Spatial Sense, and Measurement

The District of Columbia has partially revamped its math standards, but stopped short. The nation's capital should go further and replace its entire set of math standards, which are poor overall. The lower-grade standards require whole and rational number computation, as well as memorization of basic number facts, an excellent start, but there is no mention of standard algorithms, and the standards leave too much room for calculator use in the lower grades. Except for the Algebra I standards, the upper grades seem to require less of students than the elementary standards (the geometry standards, for example, are startlingly weak)--a serious shortcoming since it runs the risk of jeopardizing hard-won gains from the lower grades. And in several places, the "Performance Standards," meant to guide testing, call for mastery of material not covered in the "Content Standards," which are meant to guide classroom instruction. D.C.'s heart is clearly in the right place, but it needs to edit and integrate its standards, and beef up the content.

Read the full report on the Distrcit of Columbia's math standards here.

 
*Science-C

  • DC: Draft Standards, Science, Fall 1999 (The standards reviewed were in draft form. Thus, the following may not apply to final documents.)

The District has five expansive standards: Science Inquiry, Life Science, Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, and "Systems" (a thematic treatment of physical science within structures of increasing complexity). Overall, the document is decidedly average, with some subjects (life sciences) receiving good treatment, and others (Earth science and chemistry) getting short shrift. Add to this quality disparity the fact that D.C.'s standards are far, far too long. Errors occur, as does foolishness. Students are asked to "understand the importance of the Earth's location in regards to the sun," for example. In regards to editing, the District ought to be more precise. This document contains useful content (considering the amount of pages, it would be astounding were this not the case), but its effectiveness is undermined by sloppiness of presentation and writing. Before this draft sheds its cocoon, more revisions are surely in order.

Read the full report on the Distrcit of Columbia's science standards here. 

 
*U.S. History-F

  • Standards for Teaching and Learning: Social Studies, Grades Pre-K to 12
  • District of Columbia Performance Descriptors, Grades 8 and 11
  • United States History, Grade 11, District of Columbia Public Schools, 2000

It is unfortunate that D.C. students, many of whom attend school within walking distance of some of the nation's great historical monuments, are saddled with these measly standards. The documents are elaborate, but, despite their impressive breadth, their content remains shallow. There is no sequential development, because no time period is ever revisited in more than one grade. Thus, D.C.'s students may have, as high school seniors, only a third-grade understanding of their city's history and a fifth-grade understanding of the American Revolution. The standards are also heavy on "Content Standards" and short on factual content. These documents need revamping, and they require a shift away from social studies skills and toward substantive material.

Read the full report on the Distrcit of Columbia's U.S. history standards here. 

 
World History-D

  • Standards for Teaching and Learning: Social Studies

Washington, D.C.'s world history standards are unique in their focus on the effects of maritime power and international trade on world history. African history, largely ignored by most states, receives excellent treatment as well. That's about all the good that can be said about these standards, which pay only cursory attention to important historical periods and ideas, expecting students to interpret "major events and turning points" and "key dates, events, places, and people" without providing any details. They omit key places, such as Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Indus Valley, even as they purport to emphasize "the Eastern Hemisphere (Africa, Asia, Europe) from human origins through early and classical ancient civilizations." As long as D.C. prepares its students to be citizens in this shoddy manner, perhaps it is best that they remain without representation.

Read the full report on the Distrcit of Columbia's world history standards here.

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