Are U.S. students falling behind?
The results of the latest Program for International Student Assessment tests have been released, and there is both good news and bad to report for U.S. students. Professor Paul Peterson, director of the Program on Education Policy and Governance at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), puts it into perspective. HKS: What are the most significant findings in this latest round of tests? PETERSON: If you want to talk about the good news first, then you have to look at the state of Massachusetts because, once again, it’s showing that it’s doing very well on these tests. It’s comparable to the best countries around the world. We have put together a pretty good school system here in Massachusetts. It’s always been good, but it’s gotten better in recent years. The bad news is that the country is not like Massachusetts. Only 2 percent of the students in the United States attend schools in Massachusetts. The...