Just about everyone agrees raising the standards of American
schools is a good idea. But educators don't have a firm fix on
what that means. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the emphasis
was on making sure no one got through high school without
mastering fundamental reading and math skills. Maryland's
Project Basic, for example, established "functional" tests in
writing and citizenship as well as math and reading. About
three-quarters of the states also adopted minimum competency
tests. And there were signs of improvement, notably a closing of
the gap in achievement between black and white students. This
effort, though, did nothing to improve the performance of the
best students -- or even of average students: The Maryland
functional tests are pitched at about 8th-grade level, and most
students pass them early in high school. Attention soon turned
to making the United States more competitive in the world
marketplace by having all students master more difficult
material. In 1983, a major report on education,