Education Thematic Group event
Speaker: Chester E. (Checker) Finn, Jr., Distinguished Senior Fellow and President Emeritus, Thomas B. Fordham Institute, and Volker Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education for Research
Topic: The state of US education is troubling, with student achievement stagnant for many years followed by a deep decline due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A root cause of the achievement stagnation, according to Checker Finn, is the erosion of results-based accountability. While the accountability measures of the late 20th and early 21st centuries led to notable improvements, especially in math for low-performing students, these gains were neither widespread nor sustained. By the time COVID-19 hit, learning outcomes had already been stuck and the accountability framework significantly weakened. With schools struggling to operate during the pandemic, many accountability measures were suspended as the focus shifted away from academic outcomes to simply keeping students engaged. Checker Finn emphasizes that today the accountability framework in the US is in disarray. Few states still require high school graduation tests and many have diluted other educational standards. The shift in focus from rigorous academic standards to a broader, more lenient approach to teaching and learning and has contributed to a decline in the emphasis on student learning outcomes. Finn argues for a rebirth of accountability and warns that without it, schools will continue to fall short. He advocates for a balance between building capacity and enforcing standards to help ensure that students are adequately prepared for the future in further education and life.
Checker Finn’s article on accountability, on which this discussion will be based, is here: https://www.nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/the-accountability-challenge
Speaker Short Bio:
Chester E. “Checker” Finn, Jr. is a prominent US education policy analyst and former president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute. Among many other education leadership positions, he had served as Assistant Secretary for Research and Improvement at the U.S. Department of Education from 1985 to 1988 under President Ronald Reagan. During his tenure, Finn was a key figure in promoting educational reform, focusing on improving educational standards, assessment, and accountability across the nation. He played a significant role in the development and oversight of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Finn served as the Chairman of the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) from 1989 to 1997 – the independent and bipartisan organization that sets policy for the NAEP. He has played a significant US national role around policies that support standardized testing and standards-based accountability. In addition to his government service and think tank work, Finn authored or co-authored over 20 books and more than 400 articles, essays, and other publications on education policy and reform. Checker Finn’s longer bio from Wikipedia is here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chester_E._Finn_Jr.
Moderator: Robin Horn, Chair, 1818 Society Education Thematic Group
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