"Get Back to the Head of the Class"

That was the message of a 2012 advertisement taken out by Exxon Mobil.  Too bad Exxon didn't know much about the topic or they might have known that the US has never been at the head of the class in international math scores.  Now, that's not necessarily a good thing, but it is fact and it needs to be remembered, during the rest of this discussion.  

According to Mr. Langley,  "The wrinkle in all this is that the United States has managed to secure its international role as an economic, political, and innovation leader without leading on international exams. "  Major recessions caused by  market greed have occurred, but not as a result of anything that can be associated with test scores or international score rankings.  And, since 1971 there are categories of  improvement worthy of mention.

Category (ages 25-29)                    1971        1990
High school grad                              57%        90%
Bachelors Degrees                           12%        33%

Test scores are part of a very complex array of data upon which to judge schools.  Washington State has an Achievement Index that records data on four categories of data.  It includes both proficiency and growth, two of the most common ways of looking at data. 

To learn more, go to:

http://langleyeducator.weebly.com/uploads/1/5/3/1/1531550/when_talking_education_april_26_2013.pdf