As an American - it is an interesting question. I'm no history buff by any means....but one of the strengths of the United States is that the federal government

As an American - it is an interesting question. I'm no history buff by any means....but one of the strengths of the United States is that the federal government is supposed to have limited powers. It's also a weakness (IMHO) and being able to 'universally qualify' students is one of them. Education standards & curriculum is controlled at the state. How can you compare two students between 2 different states, when even the GPA levels can be different despite have the same grades? I have family in China...and in China there are national tests to be able to compare students. If we start doing a national tests you'll have people start yelling "States rights!". We can't even have states accept free money to give their people insurance. I don't think all states would accept a national test.