The News: The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) released the following statement, after the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) released new report card data. WILL believes the legislature should rein in DPI’s ability to change accountability standards in education.

The Quotes: WILL Research Director Will Flanders, stated, “DPI has rewritten academic standards so that the only expectation is mediocrity, and Wisconsinites must not stand for it.  Continual changes to both the Forward Exam and state report cards have created a ‘Frankenstein’s’ monster of an accountability system that outright hides declining academic achievement. The legislature must act in 2025.”  

Additional Background: Since 2021, DPI has made several changes to the state’s school accountability system that have made comparing academic progress impossible. In 2021, DPI changed cut scores to the state report card, which had the effect of increasing some school district ratings, despite no academic improvement. In June 2024, DPI announced plans to revise the terminology used to the Forward Exam. These changes marked a departure from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) own standards. Finally, in August of 2024, DPI announced that they would make changes to the state’s Forward Exam cut points and scores.  

Additionally, there are 12 public schools statewide that fall under 15% reading proficiency that garnered an accountability score of “Meets Expectations” or “Exceeds Expectations.”  

Read More: 

• The Soft Bigotry of Low Expectations: Wisconsin’s Report Card “Fails to Meet Expectations” 
• Wisconsin’s State Report Cards Mask Troubling Proficiency Rates 
• Gaming the System: Wisconsin’s Forward Exams Now Useless