Standards & Assessments: The Need and the Opportunity

Why Focus on Standards & Assessments?

Progress toward shared, rigorous standards and assessments has been swift since the release of The Opportunity Equation report in June 2009. From the state-led movement for common academic standards in mathematics and English language arts, to the Obama administration’s Race to the Top funds for state-led consortia to develop shared assessment systems, the nation is coming together in recognition of the urgency to set a high, shared bar for student achievement.

Recent international comparisons show that U.S. 15-year-olds rank 17th in science and 25th in math[1]. Moreover, the gap between our highest performing and lowest performing students is wide. Common standards can set the bar for all students—from struggling to advanced—to master academically rigorous content. And, when linked with rigorous assessments and more effective systems of accountability, they can guide stronger instruction for all students and improve the performance of teachers, schools, and classrooms. They promise to become a solid platform for a more effective instructional infrastructure, from instructional materials to teacher preparation.

In its 2009 report, The Opportunity Equation, the Carnegie-IAS Commission on Mathematics and Science Education strongly recommended the development of common standards as the basis for building a shared understanding of what students need to know and be able to do in order to succeed in college, thrive in the global workforce, and participate in civic life. The Commission’s recommendations include the following:

• Establish common math and science standards that are fewer, clearer, and higher and that stimulate and guide instructional improvement and galvanize the nation to pursue meaningful math and science learning for all Americans 
• Develop sophisticated assessments and accountability mechanisms that, along with common standards, stimulate and guide instructional improvement and innovation in mathematics and science 

Progress in the Field

  Those recommendations added force and urgency to the work of the Common Core State Standards Initiative, a state-led effort to develop improved, up-to-date standards for American students and schools. The effort to create common standards in mathematics was supported by 48 states, and over 40 states have adopted the internationally benchmarked standards to date. As states look toward implementation of the standards, two state consortia are using $330 million in federal dollars to create common assessments pegged to the Common Core standards in mathematics and English language arts. The American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), and the State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO) will collaborate to promote broad, successful implementation of the standards.

In science education, the National Research Council is developing a science education framework that will provide an overarching vision of what it means for K-12 students to be proficient in science. A distinguished panel is taking a fresh look at the largely decade-old recommendations for science education in order to reflect the proliferation of science knowledge and the current body of research on how students learn. Once the final framework is released in spring of 2011, it will be available for immediate, voluntary use by states, curriculum and assessment developers, and leaders of professional development for teachers. Achieve, Inc. will lead a process with states and other key stakeholders to use the framework to construct a set of next generation science education standards.

Looking Ahead

 The accomplishments to date cannot be overstated: we’ve come a long way since The Opportunity Equation report’s call for “fewer, clearer, higher” standards. The creation and adoption of Common Core math standards, the partnership among states to develop shared assessment systems, and the development of a framework for next generation science education represent critical steps forward. But important work remains to see these initiatives through to successful implementation in classrooms nationwide.