Worcester Research Bureau Releases Report Examining Common Core
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Thursday, May 29, 2014
Nicholas Handy, GoLocalWorcester Contributor
The Common Core State Standards Initiative is the focus of the latest Worcester Regional Research Bureau report, which was released this Thursday.
Entitled “Toward a Common Understanding of the Common Core,” the report offers a detailed analysis of the purpose, history, and impact of the Common Core and how the system relates specifically to Massachusetts’ own standards, which is known as the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework.
“The Common Core has proven surprisingly controversial, fueled in large part by a lack of understanding. Accusations of Federal mandates, corporate involvement, educational shortcomings, excessive cost, and invasion of privacy have dogged the Common Core since its start, said Timothy McGourthy, Executive Director of the Worcester Regional Research Bureau. “Our research debunks some of these myths and offers common sense solutions for moving forward.”
The Common Core State Standards were released in 2010 by the National Governors Association the Council of Chief State School Officers in an effort to lay out what students should be learning in the K-12 system. Currently, Massachusetts and 43 other states participate, with 17 - including Massachusetts - currently focusing on the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) testing pilot as a new means of assessing students.
Reporting on the Common Core
The report, labeled as a “comprehensive assessment,” examines educational reform both in Massachusetts and nationwide. It also analyzes some of the arguments raised about the Common Core and offers a factual basis for review.
“We think this represents a step forward for Greater Worcester and Massachusetts and an opportunity to improve our ability to provide all students with the necessary educational framework for college or career,” said McGourthy.
The report states that the Common Core system provides a quality education for students in the K-12 system, and is an “informed policy for building a college and career-ready graduate.” While some complain that the Common Core does not allow for true academic rigor because subjects like calculus are not required, the report argues that these requirements set forth a minimum level of learning that is expected of each student, not a maximum.
When analyzing the testing requirements of the Common Core standards – another hotly debated issue – the report acknowledges that tests that are meant to evaluate students and teachers can be a slippery slope, especially in struggling school districts. Assessment tests like PARCC must be “valid, reliable, and appropriate,” and must “test educational outcomes, but not drive the educational content.”
Offering Recommendations
In addition to analyzing the current Common Core system, the report offers some suggestions as to how to improve the implementation of the revised Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks based on the Common Core and the implementation of the PARCC tests.
Recommendations include:
- Maintaining the Massachusetts-based standards for subjects other than those specified by the Common Core
- Augmenting the PARCC exams to include Massachusetts-specific standards
- Establishing a statewide plan to upgrade technology and school facilities to better accommodate PARCC testing
- Incorporating computer and typing modules into school curriculums to ensure students are familiar with the PARCC testing format
- Continuing distribution of test results to school districts and parents to better ensure constructive learning for testing
- Reconsidering the timeline for measuring students, teachers, and school achievement based on PARCC assessments to accommodate the challenge of implementation of the new standards and systems
- Establishing a clear timeline for review and revision of the new standards based on local experiences
“We recognize that the new educational approach under the Common Core brings challenges as well as opportunities,” said McGourthy. “But we believe that the new standards build on a national laboratory of best practices.”
Related Slideshow: Central Mass Schools with the Highest Graduation Rates
Glossary
Non-grad completers: Students that have successfully completed school according to local requirements, but whose MCAS test scores (scores lower than 220) prevent them from receiving an official diploma.
Students in cohort: Number of students eligible to graduate in 2013.
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41. Webster
Graduation rate: 69.7%
Dropout rate: 14.8%
Percent still in school: 7.7%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 142
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40. Southbridge
Graduation rate: 70.6%
Dropout rate: 16.8%
Percent still in school: 4.2%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 119
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39. Fitchburg (Tie)
Graduation rate: 71.6%
Dropout rate: 14%
Percent still in school: 9.6%
Percent non-grad completers: 1.8%
Number of students in cohort: 450
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38. Gardner (Tie)
Graduation rate: 71.6%
Dropout rate: 10.6%
Percent still in school: 14.9%
Percent non-grad completers: 1%
Number of students in cohort: 208
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37. Ralph C. Mahar
Graduation rate: 72.4%
Dropout rate: 13.2%
Percent still in school: 8.6%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 174
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36. Worcester
Graduation rate: 73.4%
Dropout rate: 11%
Percent still in school: 11.3%
Percent non-grad completers: 1.3%
Number of students in cohort: 1,885
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35. Athol-Royalston
Graduation rate: 77%
Dropout rate: 12%
Percent still in school: 5%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 100
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34. Oxford
Graduation rate: 78.5%
Dropout rate: 10.4%
Percent still in school: 7.6%
Percent non-grad completers: 1.4%
Number of students in cohort: 144
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33. Quaboag
Graduation rate: 78.8%
Dropout rate: 9.6%
Percent still in school: 7.7%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 104
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32. Northbridge
Graduation rate: 83.8%
Dropout rate: 5.6%
Percent still in school: 5%
Percent non-grad completers: 0.6%
Number of students in cohort: 179
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31. Berlin-Boylston
Graduation rate: 84.1%
Dropout rate: 7.9%
Percent still in school: 6.3%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 63
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30. Winchendon
Graduation rate: 84.5%
Dropout rate: 7.2%
Percent still in school: 6.2%
Percent non-grad completers: 1%
Number of students in cohort: 97
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29. North Brookfield
Graduation rate: 84.6%
Dropout rate: 5.1%
Percent still in school: 2.6%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 39
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28. Leicester
Graduation rate: 85%
Dropout rate: 5.3%
Percent still in school: 5.3%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 133
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27. Douglas
Graduation rate: 85.1%
Dropout rate: 8.9%
Percent still in school: 3%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 101
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26. Milford
Graduation rate: 86.5%
Dropout rate: 6.4%
Percent still in school: 5%
Percent non-grad completers: 0.4%
Number of students in cohort: 281
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25. Spencer-East Brookfield
Graduation rate: 87%
Dropout rate: 1.9%
Percent still in school: 5.6%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 108
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24. Uxbridge
Graduation rate: 87.8%
Dropout rate: 4.9%
Percent still in school: 4.1%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 123
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23. Clinton
Graduation rate: 88.5%
Dropout rate: 2.2%
Percent still in school: 2.9%
Percent non-grad completers: 1.4%
Number of students in cohort: 139
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22. Hudson
Graduation rate: 88.6%
Dropout rate: 5.9%
Percent still in school: 4.1%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 220
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21. Quabbin
Graduation rate: 88.7%
Dropout rate: 3.3%
Percent still in school: 5.7%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 212
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20. West Boylston
Graduation rate: 89.1%
Dropout rate: 3.1%
Percent still in school: 4.7%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 64
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19. Bellingham
Graduation rate: 89.6%
Dropout rate: 4.0%
Percent still in school: 2.9%
Percent non-grad completers: 1.7%
Number of students in cohort: 173
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18. Millbury
Graduation rate: 89.7%
Dropout rate: 4.3%
Percent still in school: 3.4%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 116
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17. Leominster
Graduation rate: 89.9%
Dropout rate: 3.8%
Percent still in school: 3.8%
Percent non-grad completers: 1.7%
Number of students in cohort: 477
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16. Blackstone-Millville
Graduation rate: 90.6%
Dropout rate: 5.4%
Percent still in school: 1.3%
Percent non-grad completers: 1.3%
Number of students in cohort: 149
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15. Wachusett
Graduation rate: 91.6%
Dropout rate: 2.5%
Percent still in school: 3.6%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 526
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14. Narragansett
Graduation rate: 91.9%
Dropout rate: 4.1%
Percent still in school: 2.4%
Percent non-grad completers: 0.8%
Number of students in cohort: 123
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13. Auburn
Graduation rate: 92.3%
Dropout rate: 4.1%
Percent still in school: 2.6%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 196
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12. Grafton
Graduation rate: 92.4%
Dropout rate: 1.8%
Percent still in school: 3.5%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 170
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11. Shrewsbury
Graduation rate: 92.8%
Dropout rate: 2.3%
Percent still in school: 2.1%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 432
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10. Tantasqua
Graduation rate: 93.1%
Dropout rate: 1.7%
Percent still in school: 3.4%
Percent non-grad completers: 0.3%
Number of students in cohort: 291
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9. Dudley-Charlton
Graduation rate: 93.6%
Dropout rate: 3%
Percent still in school: 2.6%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 265
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8. Ashburnham-Westminster
Graduation rate: 93.9%
Dropout rate: 2.4%
Percent still in school: 3%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 165
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7. Lunenburg
Graduation rate: 94.5%
Dropout rate: 0.8%
Percent still in school: 2.3%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 128
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6. Nashoba
Graduation rate: 94.7%
Dropout rate: 1.2%
Percent still in school: 2.4%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 247
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5. Mendon-Upton
Graduation rate: 95.2%
Dropout rate: 0.5%
Percent still in school: 3.2%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 189
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4. Hopedale
Graduation rate: 95.5%
Dropout rate: 1.1%
Percent still in school: 2.2%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 89
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3. Westborough
Graduation rate: 96.2%
Dropout rate: 0.8%
Percent still in school: 1.9%
Percent non-grad completers: 0.8%
Number of students in cohort: 265
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2. Northborough-Southborough
Graduation rate: 97.3%
Dropout rate: 0.3%
Percent still in school: 2.2%
Percent non-grad completers: 0.3%
Number of students in cohort: 364
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1. Harvard
Graduation rate: 97.4%
Dropout rate: 0.9%
Percent still in school: 1.7%
Percent non-grad completers: 0%
Number of students in cohort: 117
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