News Brief
Conspiracy Theories About Common Core Should Be Ignored
Oklahoman (04/01/13)This Oklahoman editorial says theories that the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) initiative is federal interference in education are wrong, as the standards were created by governors and state education officials with the help of the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers as part of an effort to establish a single set of clear, rigorous educational standards for K-12 in English language arts and mathematics. Adopting the standards is voluntary and must be done by each individual state; education officials in a number of states have adopted CCSS because they "make sense." The editorial says the standards make it easier for apples-to-apples comparisons of student performance in each state, while allowing each state to maintain control over their education systems in a way that fosters improvement. Thomas B. Fordham Foundation President Chester E. Finn, Jr. says, "[Common Core is] the best path toward getting Uncle Sam and heavy-handed state governments to back off from micro-managing how schools are run [and return authority to the local level.]" However, even as the editorial suggests the development and implementation of CCSS should be closely monitored, it also says Oklahoma should seriously consider adopting the standards.
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