Ah ha - now you have it. Benchmark. But the only benchmark we seem to care about is within NY state. If we can't benchmark against "the world" then we shouldn't have it as an objective, right?
World class "sounds good" and I suppose in industry benchmarks may be easier to come by than what I'm talking about, but I still say you have to know if you've made it.
FYI - I'm not as negative about it as I sound. I'm trying to use my quality education on my unpaid School Board role to help educate, and make sure that when we say we are "data driven" that we actually are. We are embarking on the most formalized strategic planning process the district has ever had, and my push is the measurements so we measure ourselves and our strategic plan to self-imposed criteria that doesn't lose site of the State imposed criteria. "Say what you do, do what you say, and provide the records and results to prove it."