Press Release - South Carolina is now the 25th state to adopt a national set of academic benchmarks that detail the math and reading skills students will learn as they move up through public school grades.
The State Board of Education voted today to adopt "Common Core Standards" developed by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers - the first time states have collaborated to determine what students should know. The initiative's goal is to replace a hodgepodge of academic goals that vary considerably
from one state to the next. More than 40 states are currently working toward Common Core approvals.
The Common Core standards were developed over the last 12 months by teachers, parents, school administrators, civil rights leaders, education policymakers, business leaders and others from across the country. The group produced multiple drafts and collected comments from more than 10,000 people online.
States that voluntarily adopt the Common Core may add additional standards as long as the core represents at least 85 percent of the state's standards in English language arts and math. Local school districts would retain the responsibility for delivering classroom curriculum.
"This isn't a top-down federal mandate," Rex said. "It's a collective effort of the states, which can adapt the Common Core standards to their individual situations and timelines."
Gov. Mark Sanford co-signed South Carolina's project application with Rex.
The state superintendent said that while the overall content of South Carolina's math and reading standards is already closely aligned with the Common Core, the new standards would require students to master that content in greater depth. Rex said the Education Department would help teachers master any instructional transitions that might be needed.
Rex said the Common Core will make learning easier for students whose families move from one state to another. "Third-graders, for example, would start learning to understand and use fractions no matter which state they live in," he said.
