September 2001 * Volume 83 * Number 1

ON THE COVER

STANDARDIZED TESTING
Selma Wassermann, a long-time Kappan contributor, explores our national obsession with numbers and where it is leading us. She also suggests a better path - one developed by teachers in Coquitlam, British Columbia.

28 Quantum Theory, the Uncertainty Principle, and the Alchemy of Standardized Testing, by Selma Wassermann

THE 33RD ANNUAL PHI DELTA KAPPA/GALLUP POLL
Public support for the public schools is at an all-time high, while support for using public money to pay tuition at private schools continues to decline.

41 The 33rd Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public's Attitudes Toward the Public Schools, by Lowell C. Rose and Alec M. Gallup
49 Policy Implications of the 33rd Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll

FEATURES

AT ODDS: THE NATIONAL READING PANEL'S REPORT ON PHONICS

17 Beyond the Smoke and Mirrors: Putting Out the Fire, by Linnea Ehri and Steven A. Stahl
21 More Smoking Guns: A Response to Linnea Ehri and Steven Stahl, by Elaine M. Garan

A KAPPAN SPECIAL SECTION ON SCHOOL REFORM
What is working in education reform and what is not? For the past 15 years, researchers at the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE) have been studying that question. They summarize their findings in this special section, guest edited by Susan Fuhrman and Allan Odden.

59 Introduction, by Susan H. Fuhrman and Allan Odden
62 Redefining Government Roles in an Era of Standards-Based Reform, by Margaret E. Goertz
67 Holding Schools Accountable: Is It Working?, by Richard F. Elmore and Susan H. Fuhrman
73 Making Change: Instruction and Its Improvement, by David K. Cohen and Deborah Loewenberg Ball
78 The District Role in Instructional Improvement, by Tom Corcoran, Susan H. Fuhrman, and Catherine L. Belcher
85 The New School Finance, by Allan Odden
92 Bridging the Great Divide Between Secondary Schools and Postsecondary Education, by Michael Kirst and Andrea Venezia

DEPARTMENTS

2 GUEST EDITORIAL, Grades for Schools Reach All-Time High
3 WASHINGTON COMMENTARY, Heads in the Sand, by Anne C. Lewis
5 STATELINE, Oh, No! Not Texas Again!, by Kathy Christie
8 TECHNOLOGY, Website Design Sites, by Royal Van Horn
11 WEB WATCH, A Reader Offers Web Tools for Teaching Global Perspectives and ADHD Help
12 IN CANADA, The Politics of Choice, by Heather-jane Robertson
14 RESEARCH, Why So Few Asian American Teachers? and Tips for Readers of Research, by Gerald W. Bracey
98 COURTSIDE, Ill Advised, by Perry A. Zirkel
100 BACKTALK