Word Attack: “Status Quo”
status quo: “the state in which”; the existing state of affairs
The education reform discussion (or debate, depending on who’s talking) is filled with buzzwords and terms, most of which (like “accountability” and “reform”) are meant to sound positive, so that we choose to agree with the speaker. (“Well, I believe in holding people accountable for their actions, so yes, I’m for an accountability movement.”) We know that many of these fall apartunder closer scrutiny, but at least there’s an attempt to win skeptics over by appealing to commonly shared values.
But some terms are essentially meant to shame us into compliance with the speaker. “Status quo” is the perfect example of this.
People who regularly engage with school reform issues are well aware of the way powerful people have defined the discussion. If you agree with them, you’re a reformer, and if you disagree with them, you support the status quo, which is meant to suggest low achievement. So far, I’ve
