Set the bar higher

In high jumping, raising the bar means the athlete is more likely to fail. But there’s no other way to improve her mark.

Also in high jumping, the bar can be set at the same level for everyone. It provides an equal measure of every competitor’s ability.

Educators know how this will go. According to North Carolina’s current standards, 70 to 80 percent of students perform at grade level on various subjects as determined by their scores on standardized tests.

When students take National Assessment of Educational Progress tests, however, most fall below the level of proficiency — as the designers of those exams define the term.

This doesn’t mean North Carolina students lag behind their peers in other states. Actually, they hold their own. It does indicate that, nationwide, schools are not demanding enough. “Grade-level” achievement should be synonymous with “proficient,” and nothing less is acceptable.

Addressing this problem, a group of governors began a process several years ago that led to the development of the Common Core State Standards. The standards were supported, but not required, by the U.S. Department of Education. North Carolina is one of 45 states that agreed to implement new curricula based on these standards. End-of-course and end-of-grade tests in the spring for the first time measured North Carolina students’ achievement against these standards.

The scores won’t be released until November — a delay by a month from the original target date. They may come as a shock because it will appear that students regressed. In fact, comparing 2013 results to 2012 scores won’t work. Students had a higher bar to clear in 2013. Year-to-year comparisons will become useful again in 2014.

So, why do this? To set meaningful standards.

Newly designed courses of study, especially in reading and math, are meant to teach skills that students need to acquire. They will be consistent from state to state, enabling true comparisons and designed to prepare young people for higher education or employment following high school graduation.

There’s an obvious disconnect in North Carolina now when supposedly college-ready high school graduates have to be enrolled in remedial classes when they arrive at college, or when they simply flunk out at the next level. The disconnect is apparent when employers complain that high school graduates hired to fill entry-level jobs lack basic math and communication skills. It means students are clearing a bar that is set much too low.

The higher bar won’t only produce shocking test scores but initially might threaten the 80-plus percent high school graduation rate that North Carolina has achieved.

On the other hand, challenging students to hit higher standards from grade to grade eventually will produce graduates who are better prepared to compete with their peers across the country and around the world. That is the bar they must get over.