Common Core

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the Common Core State Standards, a set of academic standards for teaching English and mathematics in K-12 schools.

See also: Standards

Explainer

The Common Core Explained
With all the developments and debate around common standards, here are the resources you'll need to get up to speed.
Standards & Accountability Can an 'Open' Math Curriculum Compete With Commercial Publishers?
A middle school math curriculum created under an open license goes live—and its creators want it to give the big publishing houses a run for their money.
Stephen Sawchuk, August 24, 2017
4 min read
Teaching Profession Opinion Farewell (and Cheerio) From the K-12 Contrarian
It's been three years and 111 posts. It's time to say goodbye to the K-12 Contrarian.
Dave Powell, August 11, 2017
6 min read
Standards & Accountability Alabama Will Keep Its Common Core Standards--For Now
Board members didn't act on a resolution to revoke Alabama's version of the Common Core State Standards.
Stephen Sawchuk, August 11, 2017
4 min read
English Learners Teaching Materials for English-Learners Are in Short Supply. That Could Soon Change
Will the joint buying power of school districts that serve about 1.3 million English-learners force education publishers to step their game up and improve the quality of materials they design?
Corey Mitchell, August 10, 2017
1 min read
Standards & Accountability N.H. Won't Overhaul the Common Core. Its Schools Chief Still Wants To.
The state's board voted not to open the Common Core to revision, but its commissioner still plans to review them informally, with an eye to future changes.
Stephen Sawchuk, July 17, 2017
4 min read
School Climate & Safety Opinion Teaching History: A Leadership Lesson From the 4th of July
Curriculum is the developmental ecosystem of learning opportunities, strategically placed by teachers working together.
Jill Berkowicz & Ann Myers, July 9, 2017
4 min read
Equity & Diversity Opinion Teaching Poetry as a Means to Inclusion
How teaching poetry can help foster inclusion in the classroom.
Bertha Rogers, June 29, 2017
7 min read
Standards & Accountability When the Curriculum Standards Change and the Teaching Lags Behind
Teachers in three states are teaching their states' new English and math expectations, but they're also holding onto some topics that aren't emphasized in the standards, a study finds.
Stephen Sawchuk, June 29, 2017
3 min read
Education Funding Opinion 'Mass Personalization' Drives Learning Experiment at AltSchool
It's hard and historically expensive to personalize learning. AltSchool's founders think they know how and that an exponential change in learning will follow.
Charles Taylor Kerchner, June 29, 2017
10 min read
Every Student Succeeds Act Two Words That Barely Appear in State ESSA Plans: 'Common Core'
There's barely a whisper about the Common Core standards in the 17 Every Student Succeeds Act plans that have been turned in so far.
Alyson Klein, June 27, 2017
2 min read
Curriculum Q&A Q&A: 'The Writing Revolution' Encourages Focus on Crafting Good Sentences
Students need explicit instruction in how to use appositives, dependent clauses, and conjunctions, among other grammatical devices, says the author of a new book on teaching writing.
Liana Loewus, June 12, 2017
6 min read
Reading & Literacy Video Webinar: New Strategies for Reading Aloud to K-2 Students
This is a replay of Education Week's webinar, "New Strategies for Reading Aloud to K-2 Students." The old-fashioned classroom K-2 read-aloud is changing. For decades, these cozy gatherings have focused on the story line, the sound of words, and developing a love of reading. But in the wake of the common core, K-2 teachers are refining their approach, crafting questions that guide children back to the text to build vocabulary, content knowledge, and evidence-based understanding of the text. Join us for a lively discussion with a teacher who’s using that approach, and a leader of an initiative that helps teachers collaborate to build an online storehouse of free read-aloud lessons.
May 23, 2017
58:41
Standards & Accountability Should Home Schoolers Follow the Common Core?
A home schooling advocacy group was concerned when a state legislator proposed requiring home schoolers to follow the Common Core State Standards.
Jaclyn Zubrzycki, May 18, 2017
2 min read
Standards & Accountability New York Set to Revise Common-Core Reading and Math Standards
New York state is considering adopting a new set of K-12 reading and math standards that differ somewhat from the Common Core State Standards, which have had rocky reception in the state since they went into place in 2010.
Liana Loewus, May 3, 2017
2 min read