K-12 Curriculum Development

Education with John Merrow (View 3 min. 50 sec. video)
Learning Matters

John Merrow addresses Race to the Top, the Common Core State Standards Initiative, testing and accountability programs, and the current state of education in the United States on this YouTube video developed by Learning Matters.

Merrow began his career as an education reporter with National Public Radio in 1974 with the weekly series, “Options in Education,” for which he received the George Polk Award in 1982.  He is currently President of Learning Matters and scholar in residence at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching at Stanford. Since 1984 he has worked in public television as Education Correspondent for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and as host of his own series of documentaries, The Merrow Report.  

He blogs regularly at Taking Note: Thoughts on Education.

Please feel free to share your thoughts on the observations made by John Merrow.  Do you agree with all of his points?  Do you have a different opinion?  Should public schools and policy makers consider different options?

View this article at National Center for Policy Analysis.
Posted January 22, 2010

Did Texas make the right decision?

Should the Federal Government dictate the curriculum for all 50 states?

Is Texas making a mistake by possibly losing out on millions of dollars in Race to the Top Funds?

What are your thoughts?

According to a recent article published by Education Week, "Forty states and the District of Columbia applied for the first round of $4 billion in the Race to the Top Fund competition, which pits states against each other for desperately needed money, bragging rights, and leverage to implement controversial education reforms such as merit pay for teachers."
 
Specific information and guidelines regarding Race to the Top funds are available on the U.S. Department of Education site at Race to the Top. 

The Race to the Top Application is 102 pages in length.
(see attached document below)

Race to the Top is authorized under section 14006 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).  The purpose of the Race to the Top Fund, a competitive grant program, is to encourage and reward States that are creating the conditions for education innovation and reform; achieving significant improvement in student outcomes, including making substantial gains in student achievement, closing achievement gaps, improving high school graduation rates, and ensuring student preparation for success in college and careers; and implementing ambitious plans in four core education reform areas:

• Adopting standards and assessments that prepare students to succeed in college and the workplace and to compete in the global economy;
• Building data systems that measure student growth and success, and inform teachers and principals about how they can improve instruction;
• Recruiting, developing, rewarding, and retaining effective teachers and principals, especially where they are needed most; and
• Turning around our lowest-achieving schools.

In the U.S. Department of Education's Race to the Top Application, it defines "Common Set of K-12 Standards" as:

"A set of content standards that define what students must know and be able to do and that are substantially identical across all States in a consortium.  A State may supplement the common standards with additional standards, provided that the additional standards do not exceed 15 percent of the State's total standards for that content area."

Translation:
Even though the Common Core State Standards Initiative calls the standards, "common standards", the United States may be moving closer to National Standards.  In order to qualify for the Race to the Top funds, states must agree to develop state standards aligned to the Common Core State Standards.

States are struggling to purchase textbooks, pay for high-stakes tests, pay for teachers and other staff, and provide funding to LEAs.  Given the state of the economy, states appear to be "racing" for the additional funding, which is unprecedented in U.S. History.  It appears that states are willing to play the National Standards game if funding is attached.

Federal Government Role in Education:
U.S. Department of Education
According to the U.S. Department of Education, "Education is primarily a State and local responsibility in the United States. It is States and communities, as well as public and private organizations of all kinds, that establish schools and colleges, develop curricula, and determine requirements for enrollment and graduation. The structure of education finance in America reflects this predominant State and local role. Of an estimated $1 trillion being spent nationwide on education at all levels for school year 2008-2009, a substantial majority will come from State, local, and private sources. This is especially true at the elementary and secondary level, where just over 92 percent of the funds will come from non-Federal sources."

What Does the Constitution Say About the Role of the Federal Government in Education in the United States?

"The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution states: 'The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.' Since education is not mentioned in the Constitution, it is one of those powers reserved to the states. Of course, the United States Supreme Court can declare that something not mentioned in the Constitution is so closely related to something that is mentioned in the Constitution that the unmentioned power is a fundamental interest, which rises to constitutional protection. So far, the Supreme Court has not declared that education is a fundamental interest. Thus, states have plenary, or absolute, power in the area of education." 

Source:
http://www.departments.bucknell.edu/edu/ed370/federal.html

Discussion:
What are your thoughts on the Common Core State Standards Initiative?

What are your thoughts on the Race to the Top competition for Funds?

State-Federal Tensions Loom in Standards Effort
Education Week
By Michele McNeil
January 14, 2010

"In the latest push for common academic standards, coming up with the standards themselves may be the easy part: The political sensitivities that scuttled virtually every previous attempt are very much on the minds of those leading the effort this time around."

This article provides an update on the Common Core State Standards Initiative.  Whether you have been following the Common Core State Standards Initiative or this is the first time you have been introduced to the recent standards movement, this article will provide readers with a historical perspective and interviews from state education leaders.

Education Week also provides stories related to state standards, assessment, featured stories, web extras, State of the States, and other resources which will provide readers with an overview of the Common Core State Standards Initiative.
Look on the right side of the story for these resources and articles.

http://tiny.cc/N7M9h
By Bridgette Wallis
Dallas Public Education Policy Examiner
January 3, 2009

"There are already several indicators that the Race to the Top will be rife with politics, ideological battles, and special interest groups vying for a slice of the pie."

This article addresses the following topics:

Common Core State Standards

Race to the Top Funds

Increasing Role of Federal Government in Public Schools

Additional articles and updates on the Common Core State Standards Initiative may be found in the Archives.

The message below announced the release of the PowerPoint Presentation and the recording from the National Forum that was held in Washington, D.C., on December 2, 2009.  Please feel free to visit the site and share it with your friends.  Frequently, I run into teachers and administrators who have never heard about the Common Core State Standards Initiative.  This information would be a good introduction for educators or other interested stakeholders.  The Common Core State Standards Initiative is supported by the National Governors Association.  Please feel free to share your thoughts on the National Forum and the implications of the Common Core State Standards Initiative on curriculum and instruction.

Colleagues:

Thanks to all of you who participated in the Common Core State Standards Initiative National Forum. The PowerPoint presentation and recording of the event is now available at Common Core State Standards Initiative.

CCSSO and NGA
 

There are two new resources which will assist educators in understanding National Education Standards.  If you are still considering the pros and cons of state standards versus national standards, then these resources will provide you with additional data and opinions to consider.  Both resources come from respected authors, not tabloid news or editorials in the local newspaper.

Resources on National Education Standards:

National Education Standards: Getting Beneath the Surface (Free Online)
Education Testing Service (ETS) - 2009
By Paul E. Barton

The Flat World and Education: How America's Commitment to Equity Will Determine Our Future (Book)
Teachers College Press - 2010
By Linda Darling-Hammond

http://tinyurl.com/m92vd5
The Huffington Post
June 15, 2009

Jim Rex, the South Carolina State Superintendent of Education, wrote the article above. 

He wrote, "States decide how these standards are taught in the classroom and how students are tested to measure their progress. The result is that there are 50 different sets of standards across the nation, and a student who moves from North Carolina to South Carolina may face a very different set of requirements. On top of that, America's crazy quilt of standards may not be comparable with standards in the countries we're competing against for high-quality jobs."


My Thoughts:
As states have implemented the provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act, much of the focus has been on accountability.  Students deserve to have a high quality education which prepares them for college and the workforce.  It is unethical for a student to receive a K-12 educational (public school) experience which is dramatically different because of school assignment, teacher assignment, the availability of educational resources or the state the student resides in.

http://tinyurl.com/ybqo8xe
The Houston Chronicle - By Ericka Mellon
Nov. 13, 2009

According to a report by a Texas newspaper, "Texas is in the running for hundreds of millions of federal dollars to spur school improvement, but the state's reluctance to embrace some of President Barack Obama's education reform ideas could hurt its chances."

Questions to Consider:

1.  If there is no such thing as "National Standards", should the federal
     government be able to dictate which states receive federal funding based on
     whether or not governors or state education agencies endorse the Common
     Core State Standards?

2.  Does the Constitution give the U.S. Department of Education the power to
     withhold funding from states which choose to create their own state
     standards (States Rights vs. Federal Rights)?

3.  Does the Federal government have the power to provide federal funding to
     schools and state education agencies "with strings attached"?  Will states
     such as Texas be better off than states who receive millions of dollars in
     funding, with strings attached?

4.  If common core state standards are essential for preparing U.S. students for
     competition with their American peers and with students from around the
     world, should the United States consider amending the United States
     Constitution?

Additional Resources:

Education and the Constitution

Leading Education Associations Support Common Core State Standards Initiative

A Test For Our Nation - By Linda Darling-Hammond (Nov. 21, 2009)
  
Common Core State Standards Initiative - FAQs

Invitation to Attend a National Forum on Common Core State Standards

Colleagues:

The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) would like to invite you to a National Forum on Common Core State Standards on Wednesday, December 2nd from 1:30-3:00 p.m. at 101 Constitution Avenue, NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC.

The purpose of this meeting will be to (1) provide an update on the Common Core State Standards Initiative, (2) discuss the process for developing the K-12 standards in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics, (3) outline elements of state adoption of the common standards, and (4) gather your input and feedback on initiative. Additionally, a graphic display of the standards development process is now available at: 
http://www.corestandards.org/Files/CCSSIProcess.pdf
 
We look forward to seeing you next month. Advanced RSVP is not required for this event. If you have any questions, please contact commonstandards@ccsso.org or visit www.corestandards.org.

Sincerely,
Gene Wilhoit, Executive Director, CCSSO
Dane Linn, Director, NGA Center