Last modified: Wednesday, July 21, 2010 11:51 PM EDT

Latham: State ed reforms overdue

By Laura Paine / The Daily Item
LYNN - State education officials on Wednesday approved a plan to replace the current math and
English public school curricula with national standards.

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted 9-0 to join 27 other states in accepting the
new national Common Core Standards which define what is taught in math and English classes at each
grade level.

Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray testified before the board saying the national guidelines are stronger in some
areas than the guidelines Massachusetts currently follows.

Lynn Public Schools Superintendent Catherine Latham said she believes the move is long overdue, and
while she thinks it will be a hard change, she does not think it will be a serious change.

"I thought for a long time that we should have national standards and we should have a national test
rather than individual state test," she said. "I see many, many similarities. I have looked over the new
Common Core Standards and, in some cases, I think the state standards we now have are a little more
rigorous and a little more detailed than the Common Core Standard. I think our current standards are
rigorous. It will be interesting."

Latham said the changes must be implemented for the 2012-2013 school year and once the new
frameworks have been fully adopted, districts will have professional development sessions about the
new standards available to them.

State Education Secretary Paul Reville called the vote a "watershed moment" and ensures
Massachusetts will remain a leader in education.

"All along, the conversation about Common Core has been about the Commonwealth seizing the
opportunity to improve upon our already high standards," Reville said. "Today's action ensures that
Massachusetts will continue to be the recognized leader not only in performance but in setting the
direction for nation's future education reforms."

The guidelines, which were developed by a state consortium of states, have been promoted by the
Obama administration, which has linked its adoption of the standards to the $3.4 billion Race to the
Top education initiative. Massachusetts has applied for $250 million under the program and would
receive the credit if they have adopted the Common Core Standards by Aug. 2.

Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Mitchell Chester said the state will convene
panels of educators to decide where Massachusetts current standards are stronger than the national
standards.

"Adopting the Common Core standards allows us to retain our standing as a state that holds all students
to high academic expectations. These standards will spur academic achievement in the classroom,"
Chester said. "This decision also puts us right where we should be - at the table with other states to
collaborate on innovative curricular and instructional strategies that will benefit students and educators
for years to come."

The standards were developed by using the most effective academic standards across the country and
from around the world. The standards are designed to provide both teachers and parents with a
common understanding of what their children are expected to learn at the elementary and secondary
level. These standards are aligned with expectations which define the knowledge and skills necessary
for success in college and/or workforce training programs. They have also been designed to drive high
quality instruction in the nation's classrooms by including rigorous content and building on the
strengths and lessons of the state's current standards.

Later this summer, the English Language Arts and mathematics curriculum framework review panels
will be reconvened and charged with identifying unique Massachusetts standards to augment and
strengthen the Common Core. This will be brought to the board this fall for final approval.