viewed federal Common Core
State Standards (CCSS) at its
meeting this week.
the expectation that they will be
fully implemented by the end of
the 2013-2014 school year. While
the board was satisfied with how
the county has interacted with
CCSS, several residents criticized
the standards and claimed the
school is is sacrificing educational
autonomy to the federal govern-
ment.
for Worcester County Public
Schools, CCSS is a "list of skills
that we expect students to know to
be successful." There has been
some controversy over the stan-
dards as they were developed
over the last few years. Oppon-
ents have argued that the federal
government will be yanking con-
trol of education away from the
states and counties.
may be nationally controlled, local
classroom autonomy will remain.
curriculum and it provides that au-
tonomy for school systems, teach-
ers and schools to develop it and
then incorporate it into their day-
to-day instruction," she said.
the board has made sure to
include them at every point, added
Zanich.
ers, they are supportive of what
we are doing because we've in-
cluded them in professional devel-
opment and decision making," she
said.
tonomy the county will actually
keep.
the Board of Education.
controlled curriculum will be an
illusion under Common Core.
the curriculum," he said.
have taken a leap before looking
by agreeing to adopt the stan-
dards back in August 2010. He
gave a hypothetical scenario
where he offered the Board of Ed-
ucation $472 million in funding
with the condition that it would
have to accept his curriculum
without reviewing it.
lion. Would you take that and then
implement a curriculum in the fu-
ture based on those unknowns?"
Helvey asked.
trouble in the future in the form of
unexpected requirements or
costs.
station and is well on its way," he
said.
of Education President Bob Roth-
ermel pointed out Worcester did
have a good picture of what the
standards would mean when it
agreed to it in 2010 and that an in-
credible amount of study and
planning has been devoted to un-
derstanding it.
Board of Education member Sara
Thompson.
students," she said.
build our curriculum" and the
county will maintain flexibility in
the classroom. While the concerns
of residents were noted, Rother-
mel made it clear that the board
still plans to fully implement Com-
mon Core by the end of the next
school year.
home with four bedrooms and two
baths. Home is spacious enough for
your whole family. Beautifully main-
tained and located in a quiet neighbor-
hood just a short distance to the beach.
Home boasts new roof, 2-year-old HVAC
unit, new deck, new water heater,
spacious kitchen and open area living
room, and meticulously landscaped
yard with outdoor shower.
In