Many eyes reviewing Indiana’s proposed K-12 academic standards
A draft version of Indiana’s new “college and career ready” academic standards for grades K-12 was released late Wednesday, but it could be days before a key question is answered: How do these new standards compare to the controversial Common Core?
Whatever the answer, those who favor or reject Common Core expect an ongoing debate over the proposed standards. But state education officials want the public to get beyond that conflict and just read the proposed framework during the next few weeks. They are asking teachers, parents and others to then offer feedback at public forums or online.
“Please point to a standard and tell us why it does not need to exist,” said Molly Chamberlin, chief assessment and accountability officer for the Center for Education and Career Innovation. “We want to know this.”
For now, the state has no plans to calculate how much of the draft contains Common Core language.
The eagerly awaited standards are intended to replace Common Core, a national set of standards adopted by Indiana in 2010 but “paused” last year after falling out of favor among lawmakers, some educators and some conservative groups.
Indiana is charting new ground as it is the only state rewriting its academic goals after first joining 45 other states in adopting Common Core.
The 98-page draft includes more than 1,000 benchmarks on what skills students are expected to learn in math and English at each grade level so they can graduate prepared to attend a university or start working. Some standards are very simple and others contain multiple goals.
Teams of educators crafted this framework from sets of already established models, including Common Core and the state’s 2009 standards that were adopted but not implemented, during a process that began in October and ended last week. The Department of Education, state school board and the Center for Education and Career Innovation oversaw the process.
Danielle Shockey, deputy superintendent of public instruction, said the new standards removed suggestions that could make teachers feel like they are boxed in to teach something particular. What textbooks or teaching methods are used is up to school boards and teachers, she said.
Public input will be sought through March 12 before the Education Roundtable reviews the final version. The State Board of Education is expected to vote on the draft April 9. Feedback can be submitted at three public meetings or online at the DOE website, www.doe.in
.gov/standards/standards
review.
Critics of Common Core and some lawmakers have warned they don’t want to see significant similarities between the national standards and the new draft. But others have countered that any rigorous plan to meet federal requirements must have similarities with Common Core.
State Sen. Scott Schneider, R-Indianapolis, author of Senate Bill 91 that would prevent the state from following Common Core standards after July 1, said lawmakers are waiting to hear how the draft stacks up.
“A general consensus was reached: We are moving beyond Common Core,” Schneider said. “If there is an effort to bring it back, there will be a lot of eyes in the Statehouse that will be watching.”
Keeping score of how much or little Common Core is contained in the draft worries Derek Redelman, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce’s vice president for education. The chamber, which has been a major supporter of the national standards, expects to have an outside expert evaluate the draft.
“No one has promised nor has any legislation determined what can or cannot be in these standards,” Redelman said. “I just hope people can take a breath and focus on the standards. That is what we will be doing. Are they truly representative of college and career readiness?”
Gov. Mike Pence offered support of the process Wednesday, praising the three dozen or so educators and state workers who played a role in creating the draft.
“I am confident that at the end of this process, Indiana will have a set of uncommonly high standards, written by Hoosiers for Hoosiers, which ensure every child finishes school ready for success in college or in the workplace,” he said in a statement.
Call Star reporter Eric Weddle at (317) 444-6222. Follow him on Twitter: @ericweddle.
What are the proposed standards?
To read the full draft of Indiana’s K-12 academic standards go to www.doe.in.gov/standards/standardsreview
Some proposed standards
There are 76 proposed English standards for grade six. These are standards for reading literature:
• Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6–8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
There are 463 proposed mathematics standards for high school, grades 9-12. These are standards for algebra and functions:
• Graph a linear inequality in two variables.
• Solve problems that can be modeled using pairs of linear equations in two variables, interpret the solutions and determine whether the solutions are reasonable.
How to comment
Feedback can be submitted online at the DOE website, www.doe.in.gov/standards/standardsreview.
Public hearings on the academic standards will be held Monday at Ivy Tech Community College in Sellersburg; Tuesday at Indiana Government Center South in Indianapolis; and Wednesday at Plymouth High School. All three hearings are 3 to 7 p.m. The hearing can be viewed live at www.youtube.com/INEducation.