PLEASE SUPPORT HB 1714

Repeal The Core Curriculum Standards (CCS) for Oklahoma

No Child Left Behind led to the dumbing down of many state standards and very little
improvement in student outcomes. We should not make a similar mistake by accepting an
untried, unfinished curriculum. Accepting that scenario, those who have the greatest vested
interest and the most at stake in improving student outcomes would have the least amount of
control.
Boston Globe
http://boston.com/community/blogs/rock_the_schoolhouse/2010/11/rising_and_converging_the_gate.
html

Oklahoma should not give up their authority over education in exchange for temporary federal
money, especially when we have lost the Race To the Top Grant and will get no Federal money
for the adoption of CCS. Implementation of CCS has been estimated in the millions of dollars
for some states. Where will Oklahoma find this kind of funding?
Los Angeles Daily News http://www.dailynews.com/opinions/ci_17168645

It is the national assessments arising from the CCI with their subjectively scored content
that will drive what teachers teach on a daily basis, since many schools are now tying
individual student scores directly to teachers contracts/pay/rehiring. To survive, teachers
will be forced to “teach to the test”. Consequently, the current administration in
Washington behind development of the assessments, are actually those controlling what teachers
teach and children learn – not local officials and parents.
Education News http://www.educationnews.org/commentaries/opinions_on_education/103071.html

In reality, there is nothing conservative about national standards, which will further tie
schools to the demands of Washington bureaucrats but do little to improve student achievement.
National standards create a one-size-fits-all, centralized approach to education. And while
proponents will say that these standards are “voluntary,” the significant amount of federal
funding that would be tied to their adoption makes them anything but.
Heritage Foundation http://blog.heritage.org/?p=39701

As passed and enrolled, SB2033 stipulates that the CCS cannot be modified more than 15% of the
total curriculum. If the CCS are decided to be not as rigorous as first thought and are
modified beyond that 15%, there could be a very real possibility of our State Department of
Education being in violation of their own school law.
70 O.S. Section 15, B

We need to repeal the CCS before we have spent the money to implement them – before it will
cost the state to repeal them.

www.RestoreOkPublicEducation.com Jenni@RestoreOkPublicEducation.com
Jenni White, President 405.473.8801