Education, Standards, and Private Certification

Can there be standards in education without the government imposing them?


Too many education policy wonks, including some with a pro‐​market bent, take it for granted that standards emanate solely from the government. But that does not have to be the case. Indeed, the lack of a government‐​imposed standard leaves space for competing standards. As a result of market incentives, these standards are likely to be higher, more diverse, more comprehensive, and more responsive to change than the top‐​down, one‐​size‐​fits‐​all standards that governments tend to impose. I explain why this is so at Education Next today in “What Education Reformers Can Learn from Kosher Certification.”