Americans quiz their kids more than anyone else in the world: 46 million students from kindergarten through high school are subjected to more than 150 million standardized tests each year. The results of that exercise seem dismal. Only 5% of U.S. high school seniors are deemed able to pursue higher mathematical study. By most measures, students in a variety of industrial countries continue to demonstrate that they know far more than their American peers about basics in history, science and reasoning. Who needs more tests?
That question is being asked by an increasing number of parents, school administrators and civil rights...