A litmus test for the Common Core

Last fall, Louisiana's Education Superintendent John White drove to churches, schools, and Chamber of Commerce halls to promote the Common Core Standards to a state whose governor no longer wanted them, writes Kyle Spencer for Politico. White, once favored, is now the governor's most celebrated public enemy. The appeal of the Common Core, adopted by Louisiana's board of education in 2010, was that it wasn't punitive or piecemeal like many earlier reforms. Because it asked every teacher in the state to present more rigorous material, many hoped for a curative effect on a beleaguered system. But some feel White failed to see where opposition could form. Many parents learned about the standards only when they showed up in their kids' backpacks, so the notion that they were an Obama imposition easily went viral. White has held his ground, and Louisiana's 700,000 students are now learning material aligned with the standards and preparing for spring tests. He retains the support of Louisiana's board of education, its legislature, and the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry. Yet battle lines are drawn for the spring legislative session. Whether White can squash the rebellion may indicate whether less politically skilled reformers can salvage the standards in their own states, and whether low-performing states will undertake widespread reform after all.More

Source:  Public Education News Blast

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Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) is an education support organization that works as a collaborative partner in high-poverty communities.