"What AbrahamFlexner reportedabout medicalschools almost acentury ago mirrorsmany of thecharges aimedtoday at K-12schools in the innercities and in remoterural communities."Published Online: September 16, 2008Published in Print: September 17, 2008COMMENTARYThe Case for National Standards and TestingBy Walt GardnerThe schools differed so widely in their curricula, methodsof assessment, and graduation requirements that it wasimpossible to know with any degree of certainty ifstudents were being well educated. Although powerfulchanges were transforming some schools, the outlook wasutterly hopeless for two-thirds of them.If you thought this criticism was a page torn from a studyof K-12 schools today, you’d be wrong. It was from thelandmark Flexner Report in 1910 that evaluated medicalschools across the country.While it’s always risky to compare professional educationwith general education, there are parallels that constitutea cautionary tale if the United States ever expects tofulfill its duty to the young. This caveat is particularlytimely as the presidential election approaches and the demands of the new global economy makeeducation a priority issue.Alarmed by the uneven quality of the more than 150 medical schoolsenrolling some 25,000 students in the late 19th century, the AmericanMedical Association created the Council on Medical Education in 1904 toinvestigate ways to restructure the existing system of educating doctors. Thecouncil in turn asked the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement ofTeaching for help. Its president, Henry S. Pritchett, chose Abraham Flexner in1908 to head the study because of his experience as a professional educator.What Flexner reported about medical schools almost a century ago mirrorsmany of the charges aimed today at K-12 schools in the inner cities and inremote rural communities. He described the California Medical College, forexample, as “a disgrace to the state whose laws permit its existence.” Hetermed Chicago’s 14 medical schools “the plague spot of the country.” No city or state escapedFlexner’s scathing indictment.Yet he also gave high praise to schools meeting his exacting standards, including Johns Hopkins,Pennsylvania, Harvard, Yale, and Western Reserve. If he were alive today, he would have littletrouble identifying K-12 schools that deserve the label of excellent or execrable.What Flexner firmly believed was that the best way to improve medical schools was to establish asingle curriculum with uniform assessment. Why should the location of a medical school determinewhat students learned in first-year anatomy? By the same token, why should location determine whatstudents learn in 8th grade math?This question has direct relevance to the debate today. On one side are those who want to allow eachEducation Week: The Case for National Standards and Testing http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/09/17/04gardner.h28.html?print=11 of 2 1/3/2009 9:45 AMstate to establish its own definition of proficiency and develop its own curriculum. They believe in localcontrol. They say that raising standards will exacerbate the already appalling dropout rate.On the other side are those who demand a single standard of proficiency and a national curriculum toassure its achievement. They believe in a central authority. They want a high school diploma to meansomething beyond certifying seat time. They ask why geography should play such a decisive role indetermining what students learn.Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, it is the former group that currently holds sway, despitethe acknowledged disparity in knowledge and skills between students from state to state, and betweenscores on state tests and scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress.Flexner realized that raising the bar in a democracy was much more difficult than doing so in anautocracy. Organizing a universal curriculum in America would be an uphill battle, he knew, becauseof the stigma attached to differentiation in education. But Flexner refused to be deterred.The duel between differentiation and democratization in K-12 lives on today, even though virtually allour competitors abroad separate out students as early as the end of elementary school. While we candisagree over when and how to do so, the reality is that college is not for everyone. That’s whyvocational education deserves greater recognition and respect.In fact, if Alan S. Blinder, the former vice chairman of the board of governors of the Federal ReserveSystem, is correct, the only jobs that will be secure in the next decade will be those that can’t be sentoffshore electronically. That means auto mechanics, electricians, and plumbers, for example, will beworking steadily while college graduates are collecting unemployment checks.Abraham Flexner was no doubt buoyed by his belief that the nation was ready for a change. Thetiming of his report coincided with the zenith of the Progressive movement. Today, the country alsoseems poised to embrace fundamental change in the way it educates the young. That’s because theachievement gap between the socioeconomic classes persists despite the investment of huge sums ofmoney and countless hours of intervention over the years. Patience, after all, has its limits, evenamong zealous supporters of public schools.The legacy that Flexner leaves is his belief that education without high standards ultimatelyshortchanges all stakeholders. While his focus was overwhelmingly on medical schools, his messageapplies to K-12 schools as well.Walt Gardner taught for 28 years in the Los Angeles Unified School District and was a lecturer in theUniversity of California, Los Angeles, graduate school of education. He can be contacted [email protected]. 28, Issue 04, Pages 26-27Education Week: The Case for National Standards and Testing http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/09/17/04gardner.h28.html?print=12 of 2 1/3/2009 9:45