Higher Education and Common Core

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are one piece of a larger effort to promote college and career readiness in the United States. The impetus for the development of the standards arose from concerns across the nation that students were entering college and careers unprepared to achieve success. College and university presidents are among the most critical supporters of the CCSS. They want to see their students thriving in the many exciting and challenging offerings of higher education, not stuck in remedial classes trying to gain skills they should have previously acquired. Here's what higher education officials have to say about the CCSS most recently:

Use the Common Core. Use It Widely. Use It Well. 

By William E. (Brit) Kirwan, Timothy P. White, and Nancy Zimpher, The Chronicle of Higher Education

June 10, 2014

"Many of us in higher education have observed an increasing number of students arriving at our doorstep not fully prepared to pursue a college degree. This is our collective problem as a nation. Our country, and our local communities, can ill afford to turn our backs on these prospective students and their families. Consequently, higher education has invested billions of public dollars every year in so-called remedial education to prepare students for basic mathematics and writing.

"This is not sustainable. There has to be a better way.

"Fortunately, there's a solution that most states and many others are pursuing: the Common Core State Standards. This effort holds tremendous promise, but it has recently become the subject of a great deal of misinformation and misunderstanding. To show our support for Common Core, the three of us are joining more than 200 other postsecondary leaders across the country to start a coalition called Higher Ed for Higher Standards. We invite our fellow university chancellors, college presidents, and others in academia to learn more about these standards and to join us in this effort to preserve them.

And,

"Most faculty members who have been involved with the Common Core give the standards very high marks. They are significantly stronger than states' previous K-12 standards, with a heavier emphasis on the skills in critical thinking, quantitative reasoning, writing, and research that we value so much in higher education. The business community shares that view: Both the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable have come out strongly in favor of Common Core because of the promise it holds for strengthening economic competitiveness.

"Elementary- and secondary-school teachers are also supportive. Over three-quarters of teachers think the standards reflect the right expectations and will challenge them to improve their instruction in ways that will benefit their students.

"Sadly, despite the strong support from educators and business, the standards have become a lightning rod in state legislatures across the nation. Critics on the right argue the federal government has forced these new standards on the states; critics on the left contend that the standards are being put in place too quickly.

"The reality? Neither claim is true. The standards were developed by teachers, college faculty members, employers, and others at the request of governors and state education commissioners. The federal government wasn't involved in the development at all.

And,

"It's time for all of us in higher education to refocus this conversation on where it should have been all along: improving the preparation of students for the world that awaits them after high school. If we don't, states risk losing years of excellent work by thousands of educators and setting back student progress for the foreseeable future, which will further jeopardize the country's competitive position in the world economy."

Common Core Is Common Sense for Higher Ed

By John Morgan and William E. (Brit) Kirwan, HuffPost Education

June 4, 2014

"Just look at the numbers. Nationwide, 50 percent of students entering two-year colleges and 20 percent of students who enroll in four-year institutions need to take remedial courses. To make matters worse, of these students, only 17 percent will ever complete a degree or certificate. It is also an economic issue: colleges and universities spend $7 billion a year on remedial courses while students shouldered an estimated $3 billion last year. Imagine what we could do with those resources if students arrived on our campuses better prepared.

"The fact is, by 2020 almost two-thirds (65 percent) of all jobs will require at least some postsecondary education -- whether it's a career-training certificate or associate or bachelor's degree. To meet the needs of future employers, sustain our economy, and increase college completion, we must ensure that all of our students are prepared for postsecondary success when they graduate high school.

"The Common Core can reverse this alarming trend and set our students on the path to success. Students who meet the Common Core standards will be prepared to enter our higher education institutions without the need for remediation. And our data show that students who can clear that bar are far more likely to persist and earn a degree.

And,

"The Common Core standards and new assessments aligned with the standards represent our best hope for driving meaningful improvement across K-12 and higher education. Higher education leaders have a lot at stake in this debate, and it's time for us to make our voices heard.

"Higher education leaders from red, blue and purple states are unified in our support of the Common Core. Instead of slowing down or scrapping the Common Core, we say let's get on with it."

John Morgan is Chancellor of the Tennessee Board of Regents and William E. (Brit) Kirwan is Chancellor of the University System of Maryland.

Achieve has developed materials to help states, districts, and others understand the organization and content of the standards and the content and evidence base used to support the standards. Visit www.achieve.org/achieving-common-core.