The Tyranny of Metrics

by Jerry Z. Muller

It is no wonder, then, that teachers (encouraged by their principals) divert class time toward the subjects tested—mathematic and English—and away from other subjects, such as history, social studies, art, music, and physical education. Instruction in math and English is narrowly focused on the sorts of skills required by the test, rather than broader cognitive processes: that is, students too often learn test-taking strategies rather than substantive knowledge. As depicted in the HBO series The Wire, a great deal of class time is devoted to practicing for tests—hardly a source of stimulation for pupils. Because students in English are taught to answer multiple choice and short-answer questions based on brief passages, the students are worse at reading extended texts and writing extended essays—much as Mathew Arnold had predicted a century and a half earlier.