Is the Common Core racing America to the top? Tracking changes in state standards, school practices, and student achievement

Abstract

This study examines the trends of the U.S. states' reading and math proficiency standards before and after the adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and explores their impact on school practices and student achievement. Drawing on the 2003 -15 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) grades 4 and 8 assessment and survey datasets, the study gives new insights into the CCSS policy challenges and outcomes. The states that adopted CCSS raised the rigor of proficiency standards for their student assessments, reversing 'race to the bottom' trend during the earlier period of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). However, the CCSS states failed to improve schools' alignment of ELA and math programs with state/district assessments and also failed to improve students' reading and math achievement more than the non-CCSS counterparts. The Common Core has helped America race to the top for performance standards, but not for performance outcomes yet.

Examining the Effects of Language Competencies on Academic Achievements of Special Needs Students and Their Peers Using Standardized Test Scores

“…In answer to the second research question, Table III shows statistically significant mean differences between the three special needs student groups and their counterparts in general education (SWD vs. non-SWD, ELL vs. non-ELL, and EDA vs. non-EDA). These results accentuate the disparity in standardized test scores between these groups despite the push by legislatures at the state and federal levels during the last few decades to address achievement gaps amongst the entire student population (Lee & Wu, 2017;Lewis & Young, 2013;Ro, 2018). Based on these results and similar results from previous studies (Brown & Clift, 2010;Cochran-Smith et al, 2013;Milner et al, 2021), it seems that schools are still struggling to implement effective quality teaching programs that accurately measure and promote special needs students' success and learning.…”

“…The assessment of how students perform in school, including special needs students, is arguably the backbone of educational accountability (Cochran-Smith et al, 2013;Lee & Wu, 2017;Ro, 2018). However, standardized testing continues to be a controversial topic in education (Lewis & Young, 2013;Milner et al, 2021).…”

Making work private: Autonomy, intensification and accountability

“…In the UK, the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) reforms aimed to improve education to achieve quality and equitable outcomes (Ball, 2008). The 'No Child Left Behind' and 'Race to the Top' programmes in the USA similarly aimed at increasing education quality in low-performing schools (Lee and Wu, 2017). Australia's 'Education Revolution' aimed to improve educational equity, quality and social justice outcomes (Clarke, 2012).…”