Standardized tests were built for a predictable world that is gone

For more than a century, American education has been driven by the same invisible engine: standardization. Rows of desks. National tests. Rankings.

From No Child Left Behind to statewide report cards, we have long measured success by what can be quantified, compared and controlled.

This model, born in the industrial age, is buckling under the weight of a new world. The challenges facing today’s students cannot be solved by scoring higher on a math exam. Climate disruption, mental health crises, the rise of AI and the strains on democracy require a different kind of learning, one that nurtures agency, resilience, ethics and interdependence.

In short, we must challenge past assumptions to imagine an education fit for the future.

Today’s students are entering a world where few will spend