Champions of students with disabilities have long complained that those students are often an afterthought in state testing plans. Only after a test design is completed are educators asked to go back and adapt the questions for a student who is blind, who needs help accessing text or calculating numbers, or who must use a specialized device to…

With common standards in science set to be finalized in March, states will soon face the dilemma of embracing them as their own or going their own way, raising the question of how common the Next Generation Science Standards will ultimately prove to be. The 26 "lead state partners" helping to develop the K-12 standards have agreed to…

One of the chief architects of the Common Core State Standards was named the next president of the College Board and said one of his top priorities is to reshape the organization's influential college-admissions test, the SAT, to better reflect the new standards. David Coleman will assume his new duties on Oct. 15, replacing Gaston Caperton, who…

Since the passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in 2015, state teams have been preparing their state plans aligned with ESSA for submission in April or September 2017 to the U.S. Department of Education. Because ESSA lands much of the decision-making and responsibility in education at the state and local levels, state education leaders…

This report of practice describes a five-year process to establish and implement quality standards for a substantial portfolio of distance delivered courses at the Centre for Continuing and Distance Education, University of Saskatchewan. The report describes an analysis of the issues and the solutions found that led to our current curriculum…

This article focuses on the possible ways in which the standards movement and the assessments and curricular interventions that come along with it, draw on inherently religious (Judeo-Christian) language and traditions. Contributing to a larger critical conversation about standards and impact on education, and building on an emerging scholarly…

Many teachers experience the tension between using published curriculum materials and teaching in ways that are responsive to children. Teachers are often expected to use a particular mathematics curriculum series, but they still want to be able to build on and connect to children's multiple mathematical knowledge bases (MMKB).…

The new Next Generation Science Standards make it a priority for schools to focus more on the E in STEM, to help students learn the skills and practices of engineering. Schools that are doing so face a challenge, however: How to design educational experiences in engineering that engage all students--including girls and minorities, who are…

With the increased emphasis on college and career readiness resulting from the adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), the need for students to be able to read and write proficiently has become well established. Social studies teachers are now expected to teach nonfiction reading and writing skills in their content-area courses. Many…

Access to the general education curriculum is a critical component of special education today, yet many teachers struggle to implement practices that provide such access. The authors describe how teachers can draw on three levels of support--teacher-, student-, and peer-delivered strategies--to optimize access to the general education curriculum…

In the current context of high stakes testing, school literacy is often defined by standardized literacy assessments--most state tests require students to demonstrate proficiency on specific kinds of writing tasks and reading material. Today, where schools and teachers exist in an environment of increased accountability, stakeholders who…

While the merit and politics of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) have been much debated and discussed, one topic has been virtually ignored: What do the standards portend for America's high-ability students? This brief addresses that question and provides guidance for CCSS-implementing districts and schools as they seek to help these…

This paper provides a history of the standardized testing and accountability movement, the curriculum standards attached to the accountability movement, and the attempted shift to common core. Student poverty and its impact on student achievement the focus of this paper. Recognizing the impact of poverty on student achievement as measured by…

Learner-centered education has been touted as an improvement over teacher-centered educational systems. However, educators and researchers need to be cautious about its problems, in addition to considering its benefits. The authors set out to identify challenges to learner-centered education through the eyes of educators in a truly…

The implementation of the Common Core's Standards for Mathematical Practice can pose a challenge to all teachers of mathematics but especially to preservice teachers. These standards require teaching in a way that often differs from what preservice teachers have experienced as learners. Standard 1--"Make sense of problems and persevere in…