• This research was thoroughly reviewed by distinguished external and internal experts. We stand behind the quality of both this paper and of our July report on the meaning of national test scores across the country, which also sparked considerable controversy.

• The timing of the release of both reports was based on the same, constant RAND standard; we release our work as soon as the research, review and revision processes are complete. We don't produce findings for political reasons, we don't distribute them for political reasons and we don't sit on them for political reasons. This is a scrupulously nonpartisan institution.

The July report differed in scope (it covered almost all states, not just Texas), in methodology (it adjusted states' NAEP scores for family characteristics, such as racial and socioeconomic differences), and most of all in focus. It sought to explain why student achievement scores vary so widely across the states even after those demographic adjustments are made. The team that researched the new Issue Paper on the other hand focused on Texas and its statewide testing program. Texas was studied because the state exemplifies a national trend toward using statewide exams as a basis for high-stakes educational decisions.

From the Texas standpoint, the good news is that the state ranks high in adjusted student achievement. Our July study correlates this with specific ways that resources are allocated to high-leverage programs, such as pre-kindergarten, one of the features of the Texas reform effort. The bad news is that the statewide testing system in Texas needs improvement. The Issue Paper team suggests ways this can be done in Texas and other states.