It’s a well-established fact that American students are lagging behind their international peers. Currently, they rank just 25th in the world in math.
And fewer than 50 percent of American students are proficient in reading, according to National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores.
Increasingly, companies that can’t find qualified workers here will have no trouble finding them elsewhere. Countries with superior education systems, like Denmark and South Korea, are churning out young professionals with the elite skills employers are willing to pay for. The next generation of American workers is going to lose out on those jobs unless the school system shapes up soon.
Common Core doesn’t create a national curriculum or anything like it. These standards include benchmarks on par with top performing countries throughout the world, but they’re flexible enough to allow states to use their discretion in implementing them in curricula and classrooms.
Ohio has joined 44 other states in deciding to adopt the Common Core. Now comes the challenge of implementation. Our state has a rare opportunity to be an education pioneer. We can serve as a model of effective reform.
Ohio students between kindergarten and second grade are already using Common Core to great effect. Primary school educators are familiar with these standards and can pass along best practices to teachers using them for the first time.
Our state will also be building off a relatively strong educational foundation. Local high school graduation rates are well above the national average and are mostly trending upward. And our kids’ reading and math scores compare favorably to the nation as a whole. This is fertile ground for real education innovation.
What’s more, the diversity of our state’s population distribution — from large urban centers to small rural communities — means that we can showcase how to implement Common Core while remaining sensitive to local challenges.
These standards are so powerful because they do allow for customization while still holding educators accountable. Ohio has a unique opportunity to show exactly how to strike this balance and inspire other states to do likewise.
Today’s students will face global competition unlike any experienced in previous generations. Ohio’s school system has a solemn obligation to do everything in its power to prepare young people for future.
Adopting Common Core is an excellent means of meeting that obligation. And by demonstrating how powerful the Core can be, Ohio will champion a new, innovative means of holding educators to high standards while still accounting for the incredible diversity of schooling environments.
Increasing education standards isn’t a panacea. But it is an important step in helping students grow up to adults that can compete in the global economy.
Gavin Blair is president of the Pickerington City Council. He also serves as CEO of the Dayton Area Board of Realtors.
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