Columbus Sends Mixed Messages on How Well Ohio Schools are Doing

Earlier this week, we wrote about how Ohio state superintendent Stan Heffner has started a statewide tour to push out the message that the work that Ohio schools are doing now isn’t good enough for the future.

This week, he told the Akron Chamber of Commerce:

“The one thing we know for sure is that what we’re doing right now is only giving us the illusion of progress. It is not really helping us get to where we need to be, which means we’re shortchanging our kids and ourselves.”

Earlier this month, he told attendees of the annual Ohio school boards convention:

“It is clear we are not asking enough of our students. We are setting the bar too low and creating false successes and a false sense of achievement.”

In response to Heffner, one StateImpact commenter suggested the messages coming from Columbus on school performance were a little foggy:

“In the meantime, is the state superintendent going to continue to hand out excellent banners to the districts he says are short-changing our students? Kind of mixed message, isn’t it?”