Wednesday, April 2nd 2014, 7:50 pm
The push to remove Common Core from Oklahoma schools is underway.
The Senate voted to repeal the controversial Math and English standards. The State Department of Education will work to create new ones.
The Senate passed the measure to repeal Common Core 37 to 10 on Tuesday. But State Superintendent Janet Barresi has been preparing new standards for a week.
Everyday math teacher Heather Sparks physically leaves the classroom. But she never really leaves the class. So like a worried parent, Sparks wants her students to have the highest standards. Standards she felt were matched with Common Core, just not implemented well enough.
"What we're saying is, we're going to beat that," said Barresi.
So even before the Senate's vote, Barresi began discussing new Math and English standards, directly impacting Spark's classroom.
"There is complete agreement between myself, the legislature, and the governor we must have higher standards for our children, we must have rigorous standards," said Barresi.
Rigorous, not harder.
"Apply that knowledge, think critically about it and solve problems with it, that's where the rigger comes in and that's the difference," said Barresi.
Implemented last year with new Science standards, Barresi created with the help of over 500 educators at every level across the state. It is a joint effort that will be repeated once the dust settles at the capitol.
"We're listening to teachers," said Barresi.
It is a promise from Barresi, Sparks hopes is kept.
Barresi also mentioned that the same framework for those Science standards will be used for Math and English.
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