ED May Be Open To Pausing Common Core Stakes

Noting that American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten last month called for a moratorium on consequences stemming from assessments tied to the Common Core Standards, Michele McNeil writes at the Education Week (5/17, McNeil) “Politics K-12” blog about a new survey of high-level education “insiders” which indicates that most of them “believe states will enact some sort of moratorium on stakes.” However, only 18% believed that ED would place a hold on such consequences. McNeil writes that she “asked Education Department press secretary Daren Briscoe about whether Arne Duncan would echo these calls for pausing stakes tied to common core, and take relevant action at the federal level. Briscoe said federal officials have heard these concerns and are ‘thinking them through carefully,’” she writes, but adds that Briscoe “wouldn’t elaborate.”