Americans broadly favor testing to measure academic performance, as long as it’s not the only benchmark. For instance, most Americans (84 percent) say standardized tests should be used to identify students who need extra help, but far fewer (55 percent) say the scores should decide whether a student gets promoted or graduates. In Public Agenda’s Reality Check 2002, most teachers and parents said it’s wrong to rely on the results of a single test to decide whether a student advances. And majorities of both groups, teachers in particular, believe there is too much emphasis on standardized test scores. Other polls show the majority of Americans oppose using test results as the sole factor in determining whether a school should get federal funds. And half of Americans say class work and homework, rather than test scores, are the best measures of academic achievement. Among the nation’s educators, the majority of teachers and principals have some concerns about standardized testing, but they say the schools ultimately need some kind of standard assessment.