Alliance Senior Fellow Robert Rothman Highlights Common Core Standards in Educational Leadership

In an article for Educational Leadership, Alliance for Excellent Education Senior Fellow Robert Rothman offers his thoughts on what separates the Common Core State Standards from those previously developed by various states throughout the country.

Rothman comments that the key difference between previously existing standards and those of the Common Core is that the Common Core State Standards were specifically designed to ensure college and career readiness of students, something that has never before existed. Currently, Rothman argues, the majority of American high schools graduates are ill-prepared for the rigorous work of college or careers. Additionally, with the advancement of technology and the globalization of society, more jobs are requiring some sort of post-secondary education. This underscores the dire necessity for the Common Core State Standards to best prepare students for the changing world.

Rothman asserts that in the past, federal and state legislative efforts to improve student performance have included requiring standards of content and skills that all students should learn, achieving assessments and accountability systems by the end of the 1990s. But many of these state standards were set too low and varied too widely from state to state.

The Common Core State Standards bring uniformity to criteria for high school graduates across the United States by establishing clear expectations of students. Rothman, in his commentary, assures that at the very least, these standards align with expectations of colleges and more readily prepare students for enrollment in either a two-year or four-year institution without needing remediation or training in programs that prepare students for careers in sustainable industries.

To read this article and learn more about the Common Core State Standards, including the next steps to its implementation and potential effect, click here.