Not long ago, the Maine State Legislature’s Education Committee called on the Department of Education to explain declining performance of our state’s schools. When asked to characterize our back of the pack ranking on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scorecard for last year, one official told us the scores “were neither good nor bad.” In simple point of fact, the scores are bad. Worse yet, our schools are struggling not only to get back to the first in nation position they once had, but also to deliver the academic basics Maine’s children need to advance. “Unfortunately, academics will…