The recent news that more Montana schools and school districts failed to meet goals required by federal educational requirements in 2008 -- quickly followed by the same-old, same-old report that Montana SAT and ACT scores once again are well above national averages -- says more disturbing things about the No Child Left Behind requirements than the condition of Montana schools.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Linda McCulloch said 72 percent of Montana schools met Adequate Yearly Progress, compared to 90 percent the year before.

But, she said, the quality of Montana schools is getting better -- just not fast enough to keep up with the federally imposed moving target. She said the requirements for math proficiency increased 17 percent this year, and the reading target increased by 9 percent.

Among the schools not hitting the new target were the middle schools in Helena and East Helena, the city's two high schools, and many grade schools.

To Helenans, that smells fishy. Nobody is saying the community's schools are perfect and can't improve, but it is patently obvious that the schools aren't terrible, either.

The danger here goes beyond the threat of federal funding sanctions. Another real threat, as McCulloch pointed out, is that schools might overreact. She said other states have eliminated spring break, music and physical education classes in order to concentrate on "teaching the test."

Clearing zeroing in on only the sort of learning that's likely to show up on No Child Left Behind tests is going to improve test scores. But education is about much more than that. There has to be some middle ground.