The Common Core State Standards began in 2009 as a state-led effort to measure the nation’s students against a shared benchmark. At first, the standards received broad acceptance. But as the standards rolled out–and as they continue to roll out–the Common Core has become a political football. With all of the political posturing, it’s easy to lose focus and pay little heed to the voices of the people most affected by the standards–teachers and students.
Teachers are hard at work implementing the standards each day. As such, teachers’ voices on Common Core implementation are vitally important to its success. This report describes districts throughout the country that have taken collaborative approaches between management and unions to ensure that teachers have significant voice and leadership in implementation of the Common Core.
Based on interviews and observations of the teachers in the districts described in this report, the Center for American Progress makes the following recommendations to districts implementing the standards:
- Create teacher leadership roles at the classroom, school, and district levels.
- Allocate time for teachers to collaborate.
- Create systems for embedded teacher professional development.
- Give teachers an active role in the selection and development of Common Core instructional materials.
For more information, and to read the full report by Andrew Amore, Nichole M. Hoeflich, Kaitlin Pennington, please visit:
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/education/report/2015/04/28/111762/teacher-leadership/
