Education of America's school children always has been and always will be a hot-button issue. From what should be taught to how to pay for education to how to keep kids safe in schools, impassioned debates emerge and mushroom, both within the scholarly community and among the general public. This volume in the pointunterpoint Debating Issues in American Education reference series tackles the topic of standards and accountability in schools. Fifteen to twenty chapters explore such varied issues as assessment (of students, of teachers), basic-skills testing, high-stakes exams, NCLB and its legacy, pay-for-performance, standard vs. alternative teacher certification, and more. Each chapter opens with an introductory essay by the volume editor, followed by pointunterpoint articles written and signed by invited experts, and concludes with Further Readings and Resources, thus providing readers with views on multiple sides of standards and accountability issues and pointing them toward more in-depth resources for further exploration.