Good grade inflation.

• Author: Peters, Charles
• Position: Tilting at windmills - Brief article

If you wonder why increasing numbers of mayors are proposing to take over local schools, a recent chart published by USA Today provides illumination. The chart shows that test scores improved after the takeover by Chicago's mayor for pupils in grades three through eight compared to the national average, and in New York for the fourth and eighth grades after a similar takeover by its mayor. In New York, the improvement in the mathematic percentage almost doubled in both grades. The overall results were even a bit better in Chicago and occurred in both math and reading.

Takeover by a mayor, however, provides no automatic assurance that schools will improve. The mayor has to be willing to face problems that elected school boards have traditionally avoided, like how to get rid of incompetent teachers and principals and attract talented...