The 2017 Iowa Legislative Session brings opportunities to attack Common Core in Iowa with upcoming changes in the Iowa Legislature and Governor’s office.
Iowa Governor Terry Branstad Owns Common Core
Shane Vander Hart: Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad has shown time and time again that he listens to educrats, not parents or taxpayers when it comes to Common Core
Common Core Opposition Is Key Issue for Many Campaigns
I wanted to draw your attention to an interesting article in The Washington Times. Here is an excerpt: Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a Republican, cites opposition to Common Core as a key reason for her endorsement of state Rep. Chris McDaniel over incumbent Sen. Thad Cochran in Mississippi’s hotly contested Republican Senate primary. Former […]
Mississippi Governor Bryant Joins Other Governors In Issuing Meaningless Executive Order
Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant issued an executive order yesterday in an attempt to ease concerns that conservatives in Mississippi has about the implementation of the Common Core State Standards. Here is the nitty gritty of Executive Order 1333: The State of Mississippi and its local school districts, not the Federal Government or any other entity, […]
A Good First Step in Iowa
Iowa Governor Terry Branstad is one of several Republican governors who has attempted to alleviate concerns about the Common Core State Standards through executive order. Yesterday he signed executive order 83 which reads: WHEREAS, the Iowa Constitution encourages a strong educational foundation by providing that, “[t]he General Assembly shall encourage, by all suitable means, the […]
Michelle Malkin is (Almost) Spot On
Michelle Malkin has made the Common Core State Standards the subject of her syndicated column this week which has been published not only on her own website, but at places like Townhall.com and National Review. Her first article is the first in a series on the Common Core so perhaps she’ll get to it. She […]
Iowa Lawmaker: Iowa Department of Education Not Responsible for Success
Governor Terry Branstad gave his Condition of the State address where a lions share dealt with education. This follows-up his unveiling of his education plan yesterday. State Representative Jason Schultz (R-Schleswig) had this to say regarding the piece on education: Schultz said that he was completely supportive of his property tax reform ideas, but was […]
Despite Top-Down Standards Iowa Trails in Student Achievement
A new study commissioned by the Harvard Program on Education Policy and Governance and EducationNext was recently released. They compared student achievement internationally and among the states. They studied the improvement trend in 41 states from 1992 to 2011 looking at four different U.S. tests specifically looking at performance in math, science and reading of […]
Time, Time, Do They Really Need More Time?
In preparation of a new school year which is fast approaching, and along with that comes new legislative sessions with gubernatorial education agendas I thought I’d address the issue of time. Do public schools really need more time with our kids? Should the state mandate that for local school districts (and by default public school […]
Damage in Iowa’s Education Reform Bill Mitigated
The final version of Iowa Governor Terry Branstad’s education bill looks much, much different than what he passed. Originally the bill was 156 pages and it was whittled down to 33 pages. Consider that a good thing. A quick rundown… The good, a number of provisions within the original bill were thankfully dumped: Expansion of […]