The New York Times today editorializes on gains in student achievement in areas where Common Core State Standards have been implemented. This early data is encouraging for what’s to come as other states across the country move toward full implementation. As the NYT reports:
“Two examples are the District of Columbia and Tennessee, among the first to install more ambitious standards and teacher evaluations. Tennessee jumped from 46th in the country in fourth-grade math two years ago to 37th, and from 41st in the nation to 34th in eighth-grade reading. The District of Columbia, though still performing below the national average, has also shown progress. The scores of its students improved significantly in both math and English.
Moreover, according to Education Secretary Arne Duncan, the eight states that managed to get the Common Core standards in place in time for the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress exams this year showed improvement from 2009 scores in either reading or math.”
Achieve, an independent nonpartisan education reform organization, also just released its 8th annual report, “Closing the Expectations Gap,” which assesses the nationwide effort to implement Common Core Standards and Assessments. This report offers a plethora of 50-state comparison detail.