The Coming National Standards Push

Lindsey Burke / December 10, 2009

Last spring, the National Governor’s Association (NGA) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) began developing a set of math and English language arts standards as part of their Common Core Initiative. The Common Core Initiative is being driven by the belief that standardizing academic content across states will raise academic achievement, and that students will be better prepared to compete with their peers worldwide. Forty-eight states have since signed on to adopt the voluntary academic standards.

So far so good, right? States coming together voluntarily to adopt common standards sounds like federalism in action. But the groundwork is already being laid by the Administration and Congress to provide incentives for states to sign-on to the Common Core Initiative. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), Chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, alluded to as much in a hearing Tuesday on the common standards initiative. Miller stated: (more…)