Standardized testing (now dubbed 'high stakes testing') has something in common with Carnegie Units. They are boundaries educators face, push against, and climb over. They are also barriers that in some cases are perceived rather than real. But they do go hand in hand with each other. At this point we are all keenly aware of the negative views of the use of standardized testing and some are becoming aware of the clash between the need for flexibility in 21st century schools and the time-based credits that the Carnegie Foundation produced at the beginning of the last century.  Is this a changing landscape? Read more...