Already near the top

Already near the top

Lured by the promise of perhaps $250 million in additional education aid, the Legislature strived mightily this winter to pass an education reform law that expands public charter schools. But that positive step could easily be offset if state education officials don’t make it clear that Massachusetts will accept no easing of the high academic standards that have characterized this state’s public education systems since the landmark reforms of 1993.

It is important to understand that education has long been primarily a local function. Only a small percentage of any money that we send to Washington returns to the states in the form of education aid. And, long after any federal Race to the Top monies are exhausted, there will still be algebra, calculus and chemistry problems to solve, historical texts to decipher, economic principles to understand. Teachers will still be in need of professional development. Students with limited English skills will still need tutoring. In short, every educational challenge that exists today will exist a year and a decade from now, regardless of how much federal assistance comes our way.

The critical point to grasp is that those challenges can best be met in an atmosphere of high academic standards and expectations.

Massachusetts has come a long way since 1993, with the institution of the MCAS tests, strong curriculum frameworks, and a vibrant system of public charter schools. The first draft of proposed national curriculum standards, leaked last month, may pull some laggard states upward, but is unlikely to do anything but offer Massachusetts schools, teachers and students an all-too-tempting l