THE GREAT TESTING DEBATE.(Main)

Byline: William Raspberry

Brace yourself for the next irrelevancy posing as a cure for what ails public education: Get ready for the Great Testing Debate.

The people who have been plumping for a national test of what our children are learning just got a big boost. The congressionally appointed National Council on Education Standards and Testing (NCEST) has recommended the establishment of national standards for each subject, and tests to see how well those standards are met. Education Secretary Lamar Alexander predicts the tests will be in use, on a voluntary basis, within three years.

Is that, as Colorado Gov. Roy Romer, the council's co-chair, believes, "a turning point …