This book takes the view that a key strategy for improving the effectiveness of schools is to set clear standards for what students should be able to do based on the skills required for well-paying careers. It also argues that the prevailing approaches to teaching are ill-suited to furthering these goals and that new forms of assessment that evaluate student performance in the context of real problems and authentic situations can help to bring about needed changes in teaching. The book brings together some of the key thinkers behind the vision for a national system of performance standards and assessments for work skills, and addresses the major issues and challenges we face in realizing such a system in the United States.