There is much talk in the news about creating a nationwide set of academic standards.  There is very little disagreement on this topic.  Educators, administrators, politicians, and citizens generally agree that it makes sense to have a determined framework on which to base curriculum guides and, ultimately, lesson plans.  It is reasonable to expect that what is being taught to a third grader in Utah is the same being taught to third grader in Mississippi.  But what about teachers?  Now, don't get me wrong, I am not a big fan of the standardized test movement, but wouldn't make sense to require the same level of performance by teachers of the licensing test necessary before employment.  The Praxis test has been required, at least in most states, for quite a while.  But what is interesting is that states vary greatly on what constitutes a successful performance on that test.  In one state, a teacher can earn a score that does not pass muster while in another state that same score is considered sufficient.  How can we continue to raise the standards of education for the students but not even evaluate the standards for teachers?  There is a lot of buzz in the media about teacher performance but, perhaps, if teachers were trained and then assessed before employment with as much gusto and force as they are after teacher performance wouldn't be so poor because the less-than-stellar would already have been weeded out.