By Nancy Kaffer

When it comes to education reform, standardized test scores are as versatile as duct tape. 

A beloved accountability measure for policymakers, in Michigan, students’ standardized test scores have determined which schools are slated for closure or added to a reform district, whether a superintendent should be replaced by an appointed CEO, how a teacher’s job should be evaluated, which districts need more oversight — and starting next year, they’ll play a role in determining which third graders become fourth graders.

This is what we call “mission creep.” 

By Brian Witte

The redesigned SAT’s reading and writing and language tests require students to analyze passages and answer questions that revolve around science and history.

The 42 questions on the reading section may ask you to evaluate hypotheses, assess data and weigh implications, while the 12 questions on the writing and language test are Expression of Ideas questions, which prompt test-takers to improve the rhetorical elements of passages.