Rotten to the core: Big money pushes PARCC and Common Core

Each year, much is written and said about K-12 education when students head back to school. That will be especially true this fall, as the education policy community eagerly awaits a decision by the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education about whether to keep the MCAS tests or switch to assessments developed by the national Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC).

The decision will impact not only which test Massachusetts uses to assess student achievement, but also what is taught in Massachusetts public schools. PARCC is aligned with the controversial Common Core curriculum, with its emphasis on workplace readiness. MCAS, on the other hand, was aligned with Massachusetts' own standards, which emphasized a liberal arts education and were regarded as the highest-quality academic content standards in the country. In other words, Common Core emphasizes skills, while the original Massachusetts standards outlined a body of knowledge that all students should master and understand.