Imagine forty-some states all adopt new standards that involve drastic realignment of what and how all English teachers runs their classes. Imagine that the standards have such a different focus on instruction that most existing state standardized testing would have to be radically changed. Imagine that the standards are in fact so different that you suspect that early and fairly complete implementation of the standards in anticipation of the changes but before the new tests are put into place (i.e., old tests taken by students taught to new standards) would result in a noticeable decrease in overall test scores. And then imagine that perhaps there are rumors swirling that it is all for naught, that it will all be rescinded. If that’s true, think of the time wasted, the tax dollars wasted, the work wasted.

Only rumors? Does it really matter?