Do we need to raise the bar or lower it? How does this affect our standards? If you are working in a particular field or area and people are not reaching the current established levels set, what is the solution? Change the level, change the preparation, change the assessment or maintain the level? What is the solution?
What is the purpose of standards? Standards are critical to the safety, quality, and reliability of our products. Standards provide the regulations, processes, and services we receive. When we think about standards, we think about health and medical care. We know the people providing care for us have standards they have passed and use to keep us safe. We also believe the same thing about our educational services. There is no area where standards are not vital.
Recently, we have heard the news of shortages in the teaching field. Standards are being changed or lowered to accommodate this need to allow additional individuals to join the educational force. Other areas are having difficulties in finding people to fill their open positions as well. How will this work to accommodate the standards established for the regulations, processes, and services we receive for safety. Do we lower standards, change standards, or what solutions do you have?
The shortages of pilots are causing the airline industry to make decisions on how to change the standards, raise the retirement age, increase pay, and cancel flights to try to keep pilots on duty.
Lowering standards can be found in the education world as community colleges found lowering standards still had a higher failure rate. Preparing students to be college and career ready does not seem to be meeting these low standards, so the solution to lowering standards is a deeper issue. We need to look at the preparation of students coming from high school to college and then from middle school to high school. Where in the chain is the link the weakest? What do we need to strengthen? Meeting these low standards needs to happen first.
Do you know of other areas standards have been changed? What does this mean? What is your opinion? Please share your thoughts as we look for solutions to solve the many levels of the issues uncovered with standards.