Eric.ed.gov – Standards Deviation: How Schools Misunderstand Education Policy. CPRE Policy Briefs. RB-43

This brief summarizes the findings of a recent book, “Standards Deviation: How Schools Misunderstand Education Policy” (Spillane, 2004), that examines state and local government relations as the standards move from the statehouse to the district policymakers and teachers who attempt to make sense of them. It takes a case study approach, focusing on a single state, Michigan, and strategically sampled school districts. The study is based on empirical data from a four-year examination of approaches to the use of standards in nine Michigan districts between 1992 and 1996. This overview of the study’s findings first frames the subject of standards-based reform, and then moves to a discussion of the Michigan math and science standards. Variation in the progress of standards among districts is explored next, followed by a cognitive explanation for the variation and a discussion of districts’ resources. Next, variation in teachers’ beliefs about and implementation of the standards is analyzed. The overview closes with implications of the study for policy outcomes, analysis, and design.