Argues that standards and assessments are not the simple solution to educational reform they are thought to be and that they raise questions about the proper aims of schooling. Offers human capital development, i.e., the increase in knowledge, skills, dispositions, and social resources of adults in schools as a more potent potential for improving…

Disputes the reform agenda of the 1996 conference of the nation's governors in Palisades, New York that focused on high-quality academics, specifically on standards and assessment as the means for change. Believes that by building human capital and promoting teacher learning, a more significant and worthwhile change will occur in the schools. (CMK)