Understanding Standards

Once upon a time a king went for a walk through the forests in his lands. He noticed everywhere he looked there were bullseyes on the trees and in every bullseye was a perfectly shot and centered arrow. The king thought to himself, “I must meet this marksman and have him join my army.” As the king continued his journey through the forest he discovered more and more complicated bullseyes and his eagerness to meet this marksman grew.

Soon the king met a young boy in the forest. The boy was carrying a bow and arrow, shooting toward the trees. The king thought, “Could this be the marksman? Can this young lad be the one who will lead my army?” He watched the boy load his arrows and shoot. After the boy fired his arrows in several directions and hit many trees, he stopped. Putting down his bow, reaching into his satchel and pulling out a can of red paint with a paintbrush the boy carefully drew red circles around each arrow lodged in a tree.

“Aha!” realized the king and the moral of this tale: Setting your own standard does not make one a marksman.

From Professional Learning Board’s online continuing education course for teachers: Integrating Standards in Teaching