JOHN L. RURY is a professor emeritus of education at the University of Kansas. He is the author of many publications, including Creating the Suburban School Advantage: Race, Localism and Inequality in an American Metropolis.

• Abbreviations Introduction: School Accountability and StandardizedTesting in American History 1 The Origins of Test-Based Accountability: AssessingMinimum Competencies in the 1970s 2 Standardized Testing and Race: Continuity and Change,1975–2000 3 A Time of Transition: Testing Takes a Back Seat inthe 1980s 4 New Standards and Tests: Accountability on theNational Stage 5 A Millennium Dawns: The Origins and Impactof NCLB Conclusion: A Troubled History and Prospectsfor Change Appendix: Oral History SourcesAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex

"In chronicling a half-century of accountability and standardized testing, John Rury shines a bright and balanced light on the continuing tensions between political aspirations and the realities of U.S. schools and students. This book is recommended reading for all who have asked: 'How did accountability policies come to dominate American education, and why have they persisted for so long?'" - Lorraine McDonnell (author of Politics, Persuasion, and Educational Testing) "No other policy has shaped U.S. education in recent decades as much as test-based accountability. Rury provides a thorough and insightful discussion of the evolution of testing and accountability policies, the controversies surrounding them, and their disappointing effects." - Daniel Koretz (author of Measuring Up: What Educational Testing Really Tells Us) "This book is an essential, thorough, and objective study of standardized testing as used in American schools over the past 50 years. It is another impressive contribution from John Rury." - Maris Vinovskis (Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor)

JOHN L. RURY is a professor emeritus of education at the University of Kansas. He is the author of many publications, including Creating the Suburban School Advantage: Race, Localism and Inequality in an American Metropolis.

• Abbreviations Introduction: School Accountability and StandardizedTesting in American History 1 The Origins of Test-Based Accountability: AssessingMinimum Competencies in the 1970s 2 Standardized Testing and Race: Continuity and Change,1975–2000 3 A Time of Transition: Testing Takes a Back Seat inthe 1980s 4 New Standards and Tests: Accountability on theNational Stage 5 A Millennium Dawns: The Origins and Impactof NCLB Conclusion: A Troubled History and Prospectsfor Change Appendix: Oral History SourcesAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex

"In chronicling a half-century of accountability and standardized testing, John Rury shines a bright and balanced light on the continuing tensions between political aspirations and the realities of U.S. schools and students. This book is recommended reading for all who have asked: 'How did accountability policies come to dominate American education, and why have they persisted for so long?'" - Lorraine McDonnell (author of Politics, Persuasion, and Educational Testing) "No other policy has shaped U.S. education in recent decades as much as test-based accountability. Rury provides a thorough and insightful discussion of the evolution of testing and accountability policies, the controversies surrounding them, and their disappointing effects." - Daniel Koretz (author of Measuring Up: What Educational Testing Really Tells Us) "This book is an essential, thorough, and objective study of standardized testing as used in American schools over the past 50 years. It is another impressive contribution from John Rury." - Maris Vinovskis (Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor)

JOHN L. RURY is a professor emeritus of education at the University of Kansas. He is the author of many publications, including Creating the Suburban School Advantage: Race, Localism and Inequality in an American Metropolis.

• Abbreviations Introduction: School Accountability and StandardizedTesting in American History 1 The Origins of Test-Based Accountability: AssessingMinimum Competencies in the 1970s 2 Standardized Testing and Race: Continuity and Change,1975–2000 3 A Time of Transition: Testing Takes a Back Seat inthe 1980s 4 New Standards and Tests: Accountability on theNational Stage 5 A Millennium Dawns: The Origins and Impactof NCLB Conclusion: A Troubled History and Prospectsfor Change Appendix: Oral History SourcesAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex

"In chronicling a half-century of accountability and standardized testing, John Rury shines a bright and balanced light on the continuing tensions between political aspirations and the realities of U.S. schools and students. This book is recommended reading for all who have asked: 'How did accountability policies come to dominate American education, and why have they persisted for so long?'" - Lorraine McDonnell (author of Politics, Persuasion, and Educational Testing) "No other policy has shaped U.S. education in recent decades as much as test-based accountability. Rury provides a thorough and insightful discussion of the evolution of testing and accountability policies, the controversies surrounding them, and their disappointing effects." - Daniel Koretz (author of Measuring Up: What Educational Testing Really Tells Us) "This book is an essential, thorough, and objective study of standardized testing as used in American schools over the past 50 years. It is another impressive contribution from John Rury." - Maris Vinovskis (Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor)