ACT, SAT, and NAEP Scores All Point to "Test-and-Punish" Failure

Recently released results from U.S. college admissions exams and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)provide more evidence that test-and-punish policies, which have dominated U.S. public schools for the past decade and a half, are an abject failure.Promoters of ‘No Child Left Behind’ and similar test-driven schemes in many states promised significant gains in overall academic achievement. They also said historic performance gaps between racial groups would narrow. However, scores from the SAT, ACT and NAEP show neither desirable trend. It’s clearly time for new directions in assessment policy at the federal, state and local levels.