Common Core bait and switch in Kentucky???
The final version of Senate Bill 1 from the 2017 Kentucky Regular Legislative Session (SB-1/2017) is now awaiting the governor’s signature, and a very interesting statement from the original version of the act remains in the final.
On Page 99 of the Engrossed Version of the act (which goes to the governor), it says:
“Section 18. In adopting the amendments to KRS 158.6453 contained in Section 3 of this Act, the General Assembly intends, among other actions, to repeal the common core standards.”
Assuming Governor Bevin signs SB-1/2017 as is with no line item veto, it would seem that the Common Core State Standards are officially on the way out in Kentucky.
But, looks might be deceiving.
You see, SB-1/2017 also outlines in considerable detail a process to review all of Kentucky’s academic standards beginning in 2017-18. In fact, the core teams that will actually write the standards are called “Standards and Assessments Review and Development Committees.” However, nowhere in the discussion of how the many committees and panels are to operate does it clearly direct those panels to start with a clean slate – a slate without a Common Core State Standards basis.
In fact, including the term “Review” in the base groups’ titles clearly does not mandate either revision or replacement. A “Review” could leave the standards EXACTLY as they are, for example. If these teams were clearly charged with replacing Common Core, they would be called something like “Standards and Assessments Development Committees.”
Because teacher members predominate on the major committees and panels that will actually write the new standards, it is highly likely that the Common Core will be the basis for whatever comes next.
It seems likely that this new standards process will result in some changes from the current Common Core based standards used in Kentucky today, but will those changes be very substantial? Will those changes incorporate some rather recent research that shows some basic ideas in Common Core are not optimal for real classrooms? Will the changes actually amount to something most would call a “repeal?”
Only time will tell.
For sure, SB-1/2017 directs a major review of Kentucky’s current academic standards. Language beginning on Page 12 of the final version of SB-1 directs how all the standards will henceforth be reviewed on a staggered, six-year cycle, with the process beginning in 2017-18.This revision process will be led by four “Standards and Assessments Review and Development Committees.” These will be composed of six working teachers plus two college professors. These four committees will cover the subject areas of:
Language Arts and Writing,
Mathematics,
Science and
Social Studies.
The Standards and Assessments Review and Development Committees will get lots of input. That includes:
Three, grade specialist “Advisory Panels” for each of the four basic committees to cover grades K to 5, 6 to 8 and 9 to 12 (for a total of 12 separate Advisory Panels). The Advisory Panels will be composed six working teachers and one college professor.
Business and Industry consultants who offer career fields that depend on the various content areas. These will be appointed by the Kentucky Commissioner of Education and the President of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary education for all the committees and panels.
Web-based services to facilitate public involvement in the standards/assessment review processes.
Finally, due to legislative concerns about past implementation of an older SB-1 from the 2009 Regular Legislative Session, which some believe was misused to bring Common Core State Standards to Kentucky, there will be a “Standards and Assessments Process Review Committee” manned with appointees from the legislature and the governor to insure the process to develop each new set of standards (but not the academic content) provided all stakeholders an adequate chance to be involved and that the technical requirements of this new SB-1 are properly followed.
Following approval by the Standards and Assessments Process Review Committee, the Kentucky Board of Education will then use the state’s normal regulation creation/approval process to actually promulgate the new standards by regulation.
There is a catch in SB-1/2017’s discussion of the standards review process because nowhere in the legislation does it direct the various standards development teams to toss out Common Core. With teachers basically in control of the committees, the committees will likely just start with Common Core and might only make adjustments as they deem fit. Kentucky could very easily wind up with a set of standards little changed from Common Core or the Next Generation Science Standards, either. That would make the new standards subject to the many short-comings in Common Core and Next Gen Science that we at BIPPS have criticized before, a very incomplete and partial list including:
Potentially age inappropriate sequencing of material, especially for students wanting a STEM career,
So, will SB-1/2017 really “repeal” common core in Kentucky? Only time, and a lot of public input to the standards review process, will tell.