The Common Core drama continues in Florida: after much coquetry, the Sunshine State has officially opted to abandon PARCC in favor of commissioning a new exam aligned to its new (Common Core-heavy) state standards. The contract went to American Institutes for Research (AIR), beating out overtures from the likes of ACT, Pearson, and McGraw-Hill. We’re all for a competitive assessment marketplace, but we’re also skeptical that anyone but PARCC and Smarter Balanced has had the time and resources to develop a truly Common Core-aligned test.
In an amendment to the state’s education budget, Wyoming became the first state to officially block adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards—ostensibly because the NGSS teach climate change. In our state-by-state analysis of the NGSS, we found that these new “national” standards for science are not superior to enough states’ existing science standards to warrant full-throated support. However, they are certainly of higher quality than Wyoming’s existing science standards. The Cowboy State is shooting itself in the foot. (If they don’t like NGSS, they should Xerox California’s or D.C.’s science standards.)
