Where I Stand:

Common Core standards are sorely needed in Nevada

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Kristin McMillan

As he does every August, Brian Greenspun is taking some time off and is turning over his Where I Stand column to others. This week’s guest columnist is Kristin McMillan, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce.

We all know Nevada students have historically underperformed compared with those in other states; they are way behind in reading and math scores. We know Nevada has one of the lowest high school graduation rates in the nation. We have heard that a high percentage of first-year students at Nevada’s universities and colleges have had to enroll in a remedial class because they lacked the needed skills for college-level work.

But consider this: By 2020 nearly 60 percent of jobs in Nevada will require a post-secondary degree or credential. However, only 28 percent of adults in Nevada have one. A 30 percent skills gap should alarm us all. There is a limit to how fast and far we can move our economy and quality of life forward unless this gap is narrowed.

Yes, significant progress was made during the 2015 legislative session to enact education reforms and apply more resources to K-12. Programs are being put into place to target some of our largest deficiencies and to make sure students, particularly those who are not keeping up with grade level, get the support they need to achieve.

But without raising the overall level of academic standards, we cannot ensure students will reach their potential and are ready for the challenges of post-secondary education and the workforce.

The Las Vegas Metro Chamber has partnered with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation in a recently released report. Among other things, the report states that “Nevada’s previous standards were missing as much as 50 percent of content deemed essential by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute.” It also cites a 2007 report in which Nevada received one of the lowest scores in the nation in academic achievement and post-secondary and workforce readiness.

One of the most significant reforms in our state K-12 education system, therefore, has been the adoption and implementation of Common Core standards. These are known in Nevada as the Nevada Academic Content Standards. The standards consist of an established set of guidelines for what students should know and be able to do at each grade level. They do not prevent teachers from using different methods or curricula. Teachers can still be creative in their instruction, but all students will learn the same skills outlined in the standards.

This makes sense for a number of reasons. For years, academic standards have varied from state to state, district to district. This makes it hard for students who move from different areas of the country and across districts and schools to keep up academically. In particular, in Las Vegas — with its continuous growth and a high degree of movement from one school to another — a consistent set of standards will allow transitions to occur as seamlessly as possible and prevent students from falling behind. It also has been difficult for businesses to find the skilled workforce they need. These standards are a good pathway for raising academic achievement to meet workforce demands.

Many do not know that Common Core began as an initiative led by governors across the country to better align classroom instruction with the needs of employers to improve the chances that states could be more competitive in the global economy. Gov. Brian Sandoval has been supportive of Common Core as well. The standards were created by educators and businesspeople working together, not the federal government. Curriculum is the course of study that covers the standards and is set by local school districts and teachers, including the lesson plans, programs and textbooks that teachers use to teach the content and the skills outlined in the standards.

The Nevada State Board of Education adopted Common Core in 2010 as the Nevada Academic Content Standards, and districts have been implementing them since 2011. Science standards were adopted by the Board of Education in 2014 and are being implemented. While schools in Nevada are still transitioning into full implementation, we are seeing improvement in educational outcomes. Coupled with curricula containing more emphasis on STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education, Nevada students are and will be better prepared for the challenges of the workforce in a global marketplace, and will be better able to reap the rewards of advancement in their careers.

For its part, the Metro Chamber will continue to be a strategic partner in helping to improve the quality of K-12 education on behalf of Nevada’s students and employers. The business community is the largest customer of an educated and prepared workforce, so this is monumentally important. As a result, the Metro Chamber has made it a priority to partner with many others in our state through the Common Core Coalition, as well as with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, to help businesses and our community better understand these standards and their importance.

Nowhere in the United States has the need to elevate classroom standards and achievement been greater than in Nevada, where proficiency scores have consistently been below the national average. There is no denying that, if we do nothing, we will get further and further behind as workforce needs continue to require more and more technical and critical thinking skills. While these standards may lead to curricula that are more challenging for students to master, the job skills needed today and tomorrow are also far more challenging.

It is essential that we place our collective support behind Common Core, the Nevada Academic Content Standards. By doing so, these standards can be fully implemented in our schools. Students deserve to be prepared for what lies ahead. Our future depends on it.

You can read a recent report released by the Las Vegas Metro Chamber, in partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, on our website, www.lvchamber.com.

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