New Research Links Common Core Math Standards to Higher Achievement

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Washington, D.C. – April 27, 2012 – Dr. William Schmidt, Michigan State University Distinguished Professor and co-director of the school’s Education Policy Center, will discuss his new research, Common Core State Standards Math: The Relationship Between High Standards, Systemic Implementation and Student Achievement, demonstrating that the K-12 Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for mathematics are needed and, if implemented well, can improve student achievement.

Schmidt's work focuses on the strong resemblance of the CCSS for mathematics to the standards of the highest-achieving nations; the improvement in focus, coherence and rigor of the CCSS for mathematics beyond the state standards they replaced; and the link between higher National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) mathematics scores and states with standards closely aligned to the CCSS for mathematics.

The event is being co-sponsored by Achieve, Chiefs for Change and the Foundation for Excellence in Education.

WHO:  William Schmidt, Professor, Michigan State University

Mike Cohen, President, Achieve

John Bailey, Advisor, Chiefs for Change

WHAT: Release of new research on the Common Core State Standards for mathematics

WHEN:  Thursday, May 3, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. ET

WHERE: National Press Club 529 14th Street, NW, 13th floor Washington, D.C. First Amendment Room Please RSVP to Vernitta Cooper at vcooper@achieve.org or (202) 419-1568.

William Schmidt is a Michigan State University Distinguished Professor and co-director of the Education Policy Center. He holds faculty appointments in measurement and quantitative methods and the Department of Statistics. His current writing and research concerns issues of academic content in K-12 schooling, teacher preparation and the effects of curriculum on academic achievement. He is also concerned with educational policy related to mathematics, science and testing in general. He is a member of the National Academy of Education and a fellow of the American Educational Research Association (AERA).

Chiefs for Change is a coalition of state school chiefs and leaders that share a zeal for education reform. Together, they provide a strong voice for bold reform on the federal, state and local level. They are committed to putting children first through bold, visionary education reform that will increase student achievement and prepare students for success in colleges and careers.

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Created in 1996 by the nation's governors and corporate leaders, Achieve is an independent, bipartisan, nonprofit education reform organization based in Washington D.C. that helps states raise academic standards and graduation requirements, improve assessments, and strengthen accountability. Achieve is leading the effort to make college and career readiness a national priority so that the transition from high school graduation to postsecondary education and careers is seamless. In 2005 Achieve launched the American Diploma Project Network. Starting with 13 original states, the Network has now grown to include 35 states educating nearly 85 percent of all U.S. public school students. Through the ADP Network, governors, state education officials, postsecondary leaders and business executives work together to improve postsecondary preparation by aligning high school standards, assessments, graduation requirements and accountability systems with the demands of college and careers. For more information about the work of Achieve, visit www.achieve.org.