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'Race to Top' Standards Link Questioned

Some in Congress Worry Federal Intrusion Ahead Through Money for Testing

Republican leaders on the House Education and Labor Committee are eyeing part of the final regulations for the economic-stimulus program’s Race to the Top Fund that they say could lead to a de facto national curriculum—and even a national test.

In competing for $4 billion in Race to the Top grants—available under the federal stimulus law to reward states for making progress in boosting student achievement—states are encouraged to take part in a venture to devise common academic standards.

Right now, the only national effort that fits that description is the Common Core State Standards Initiative, spearheaded by the Council of Chief State School Officers and...