Questions linger about learning initiative

Jul 27, 2010 — The Telegraph (Nashua, N.H.)

Michael Brindley

Jul. 25, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- While some New Hampshire education officials are lauding the decision to adopt a set of national academic standards, questions remain about what impact the changes will bring to classrooms across the state.

Earlier this month, the state Board of Education voted to adopt what are being referred to as the Common Core Standards, intended to standardize what's taught in math and English in each grade. Until now, each state has had its own set of standards.

As of last week, New Hampshire was one of 25 states to sign on to the initiative, coordinated by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and the Council of Chief State School Officers. Some states have already chosen not to adopt the standards.

New Hampshire Deputy Education Commissioner Paul Leather said adoption of the standards is the end a yearlong process that began when former Commissioner of Education Lyonel Tracy agreed to explore the idea of a common set of national standards in April 2009. But approval of the state board is only the first step toward implementation, he said.

"We're now going to be going through quite a deliberate process, looking at the standards in terms of our current standards," Leather said.

The standards are supposed to provide "a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them," according to the web site, www.corestandards.org. "The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers. With American students fully prepared for the future, our communities will be best positioned to compete successfully in the global economy."

Leather said New Hampshire was one of the leaders of this concept, with the creation of the New England Common Assessment Program. The test was designed with education officials from Vermont and Rhode Island, and the three states have worked to align their standards. Maine has since joined, as well.

But with adopting the new standards, Leather said the NECAP may have to be scrapped in a few years and replaced with a national assessment. New Hampshire currently uses the NECAP to test students in grades 3, 8 and 11 in math, reading and writing.

What the adoption of the national standards means for local school districts is still unclear.

For Nashua Superintendent Mark Conrad, there are still more questions than answers: What does it mean for the future of NECAP? How do the new standards compare to the state's already defined grade-level expectations?

"We need more information before we can answer that," he said. "The concern might be whether those core standards are below the expectations we've already set. We want to make sure we're not reducing our expectations."

Despite the uncertainty, Conrad said he's generally in favor of the concept of having a single set of national standards. It would make it easier for states to compare their achievement against each other and would also help with students moving into Nashua from other parts of the country, he said.

"We live in a mobile society, and over time it will certainly help to have more consistency in assessments," he said.

Milford Superintendent Bob Suprenant said he doesn't see the new standards leading to any big changes in the classroom. To his knowledge, Suprenant said there aren't any major differences between New Hampshire's grade-level expectations.

"I doubt there is going to be anything that is going to be all that different from what our expectations for our own students are now," he said. "In that sense, I'm supportive of them."

Not everyone is convinced this was the right move for New Hampshire.

John Lyons, chairman of the state Board of Education, was the only member to vote against adopting the standards. His primary concerns are lack of local control and not having enough time to thoroughly review the standards.

Although Lyons said he did read them, he wanted to be able to fully understand the differences between the new standards and what's already being taught in New Hampshire schools.

"Given the breadth and scope, we needed much more time to vet the rules and understand what they said," he said. "More importantly, once New Hampshire becomes part of a consortium, I'm very concerned as to who will end up controlling that consortium of multiple states and whether New Hampshire's voice will be drowned out."

The math portion of the Common Core Standards is a 93-page document outlining specifically what students should be learning in each grade.

For example, in the third grade, students should be developing understanding of multiplication and division and strategies for multiplication and division within 100. And in the seventh grade, students should be developing an understanding of and applying proportional relationships.

Leather said there will be flexibility for states that want to go beyond the standards.

The state Board of Education held public input sessions in Concord before approving the standards, but Lyons said that wasn't enough. When the state was approving a new set of minimum standards for school approval, several meetings were held across the state to gather feedback, he said.

At least one study indicates the new standards will be an improvement for New Hampshire. The Thomas B. Fordham Institute analyzed each state's education standards and gave New Hampshire a C and a D in English language arts and math respectively. The study named New Hampshire as one of 33 states for which the Common Core Standards would be an improvement in both subjects.

Leather said one of the issues that would have to be addressed with adoption of the new standards are conflicts with the popular Everyday Math curriculum, which Nashua and Milford use.

Leather couldn't provide specific examples of what those conflicts are, but in March, the University of Chicago's Center for Elementary Mathematics and Science Education, the maker of Everyday Math, made it clear it wasn't happy with the proposed new standards.

In a statement, the university said: "We believe that the proposed CCS standards for mathematics in grades K-6 would promote a back-to-basics curriculum that ignores the profound changes that have taken place in the last 50 years. CCS's largely paper-and-pencil approach to mathematics in K-6 is obsolete."

The statement listed several shortcomings within the then-proposed standards, including "inadequate exposure to concepts of data and probability," "an overemphasis on teaching by telling," and a "disregard of existing and emerging technology."

It isn't clear whether those concerns raised were ever addressed or led to any changes, but Leather said now that so many states are signing on, the makers of Everyday Math are working to adjust their curriculum.

Although the U.S. Department of Education didn't play a direct role in developing the standards, the Obama administration has been encouraging states to sign on. Doing so gives states a few extra points on their Race to the Top applications.

Thomas Horgan, executive director of the New Hampshire College and University Council, said that while he's supportive of the move, he hopes states such as New Hampshire aren't adopting the standards simply to have a better shot at federal funding.

"We need to have a serious commitment to educational improvement," Horgan said. "It's a little concerning to see a lot of states rushing to do this because they want some federal dollars. We've got to be committed to it whether we get Race to the Top funds or not."

Mary Heath, dean of the school of education at Southern New Hampshire University, said there are many benefits to moving forward to a set of national standards.

Heath is the former deputy commissioner of education and worked under Tracy when he agreed to take part in the idea. Heath said having national standards will give textbook manufacturers a common agenda.

Looking at countries that have passed the United States in education, Heath said they have also adopted national academic standards.

"As a country, we're coming together to really assess what it is our kids need to be able to do," she said.

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