Why I back Common Core

by Phil Kirk, former chairman State Board of Education and NC SPIN panelist, printed in Charlotte Observer, November 5, 2013.

N.C. students are counting on us. Every child and parent from kindergarten to 12th grade is trusting that voters, school administrators and public officials are making the best decisions possible to prepare them for the future.

For today’s generation of students, that future will require them to graduate ready for college and careers. They will need to have mastered the skills, knowledge and problem-solving abilities required to compete for jobs with other young people across the country and the world, or, to be ready to handle the increasingly high-stakes challenges of higher education.

It is for this reason that I became a strong supporter of the state’s adoption of the Common Core State Standards and that I continue to support their full implementation. These guidelines, which were developed by the states (including North Carolina), outline what students should learn by the time they graduate from high school in the areas of English, language arts and math.

I am a life-long Republican. I believe in local control of schools and in keeping the government out of as much of our lives as possible. I have watched the process that led to the adoption of the Common Core State Standards, and I know that it is completely in line with my values and beliefs.

The standards are rigorous. They are clear. And they are free from any philosophical or political point of view.

The curriculum emphasizes developing higher-level thinking and critical analytical skills. Although I continue to support strict accountability standards, such as testing, I believe these new standards will be of more value to educators and students as we continue to improve our educational system.

Common Core began in 2009, when 48 states joined with the National Governors Association and Council of Chief State School Officers to commit to a state-led process to develop what has become the Common Core State Standards.

North Carolina was a strong leader in this effort. I was especially supportive because this was a state-led initiative and kept Washington and the federal government out of it.

The standards leave plenty of room for educators to decide what and how to teach. They lay out what the students at all schools need to know by the time they pick up the diploma, but how they get there is up to teachers, principals and school boards.

Some are making false claims about the process that led to the standards and what they contain. Mostly they boil down to creating an alternate history that says that the federal government developed and imposed the Common Core. If I had not been an active participant in the process and heard these claims, I, too, would be concerned. But I was there and I know the claims are wrong.

Let’s stick with the Common Core, North Carolina. Our children are counting on us. We cannot afford to disappoint or short change them.