But the system itself is in a fragile state these days, and, I would suggest, there will never be a better time for California to revise its standards. In fact, the equilibrium and momentum have already been cast aside. How so? Let's explore.
As we've established, standards-based systems include: standards, assessments, accountability indicators, instructional materials, and professional support/training for teachers and administrators. Additionally, California's State Board of Education has a constitutional requirement to adopt (and distribute for use without charge) textbooks (instructional materials).
The economic challenges facing the state have resulted in a quasi-dismantling of the standards-based system. Consider that in the past two years, the following actions have been taken:
- The state suspended the 4th grade writing assessment of the California Standards Test in English/Language Arts
- The state suspended the development and adoption of revised curriculum frameworks
- The state included the categorical funds for instructional materials in a broad shift of those funds for general purpose use.
- The state suspended the requirement that local education agencies adopt new standards-based materials within 24 months of their approval by the State Board of Education
The fall out from these actions is widespread. For example, textbook publishers--many of which had spent tens of millions of dollars developing materials for approval in California--saw a half-billion dollar annual industry disappear, along with their investment. The decisions also caused widespread confusion and inconsistent messages as the State Board of Education directed school districts with federal program improvement status to "adopt a new curriculum."
So let's assume for a moment that the Common Core standards never happened, and that California's wrestling with its own budget demons is resolved over the next few years. Could the state simply go back to the future? Could it reinstate all of the programs and activities currently suspended and just get back to the business of its prior standards-based system? I think not. Here are four broad reasons why:
1. Education reformers are aggressively pursuing open source curriculum resources. With the universe of knowledge available on the internet, sites such Curriki (http://www.curriki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Main/WebHome) and CK-12 (http://www.ck12.org/flexr/) are redefining access to instructional content. And they are doing so based on a "bottom-up" approach in which teachers, teams, sites, and districts are driving the development of standards-based materials in their classroom. These sites integrate social and professional networking with academic content to make powerful curriculum available and understood.
2. The Common Core Assessment initiative on its own accord will bring dramatic change to standards-based assessments. On a practical basis, shared costs for development, technology, and administration will usher in a new era of state testing. Broader questions--expanded use of technology in testing, integration of formative, summative, and state assessments--may shift the landscape as well.
3. The reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act--probably in 2011--will almost certainly bring significant changes in accountability structures and indicators as well as new demands on state date systems related to student academic growth, attendance, and graduation rates. Combined, standards-based systems will see shifts in purpose, priority, and substance.
4. Finally, having been burned by the policy shifts in the state, it is likely that the major education publishers will be cautious about any return to "normal" in California. Many of these publishers are aggressively pursuing multiple strategies for the future, including new media, and curriculum management.
These realities suggest that California cannot return to what once was. Regardless of whether the state adopts the Common Core standards or rejects them, the standards-based system of support for the standards will never be the same.
Consequently, two conclusions are clear. First, the Common Core standards arrive at a natural time for revising and rebuilding the system that supports the standards. Second, events and activities external to California are hurling all states into the future at a pace not currently understood. The state must commit itself to working towards it's future standards-based system rather than seeking a return to its old one.
