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Under the Every Student Succeeds Act, States Have Full Control of Education Standards—and They Continue to Implement Common Core
Voters should need leaders who will “get our education system back on track” by opposing Common Core State Standards, contends Phyllis Schlafly, an outspoken critic of the standards, in an opinion piece published by Charisma News. “We hope some candidates will distinguish themselves from the pack by calling for eliminating Common Core and restoring local control of curriculum with parental input.”
In the last Republican presidential debate, Senator Marco Rubio made a similar claim to Schlafly. “We cannot afford to have a president of the United States that supports Common Core,” he said in attack against New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
A report by the Daily Caller points out the falsehood of such claims. “Regardless of one’s position on Common Core, the country probably can afford a president who supports [Common Core], because the presidency now has almost no role in the issue.”
Who holds the nation’s highest office should have no bearing on whether states are able to continue to implement the Common Core. And Congress took a meaningful step to ensure state and local leaders are free to make that determination by passing the Every Student Succeeds Act, which – once and for all – clarifies that the federal government should not and does not have control over states’ education standards.
Congressman John Kline, chairman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, calls the Every Student Succeeds Act a “huge win for conservatives.” When asked if it should put to rest concerns about federal involvement in the Common Core, Rep. Kline added, “That is exactly correct. The federal government should not be able to tell states what standards they can or cannot adopt. If states want to use Common Core, it is not the place of the federal government to tell them they cannot do that.”
States are now firmly in charge of their education standards and how they measure student development. And overwhelmingly, they are continuing to implement the Common Core. As Karen Nussle wrote last year, Common Core State Standards are here to stay.
About the Collaborative for Student Success
At our core, we believe leaders at all levels have a role to play in ensuring success for K-12 students. From ensuring schools and teachers are equipped with the best materials to spotlighting the innovative and bold ways federal recovery dollars are being used to drive needed changes, the Collaborative for Student Success aims to inform and amplify policies making a difference for students and families.
To recover from the most disruptive event in the history of American public schools, states and districts are leveraging unprecedented resources to make sure classrooms are safe for learning, providing students and teachers with the high-quality instructional materials they deserve, and are rethinking how best to measure learning so supports are targeted where they’re needed most.