Governor Brian Kemp and State School Superintendent Richard Woods are leading an effort to review and revise Georgia’s K-12 academic standards. The process will include a survey and reviews by several committees comprised of parents, teachers, education officials and other key stakeholders.
According to information released by Governor Kemp’s office, efforts to review standards will focus on English Language Arts (ELA) and mathematics standards currently known as the Georgia Standards of Excellence.
“To ensure every Georgian is given the opportunity to learn, grow, and succeed, State School Superintendent Richard Woods and I are committed to developing quality academic standards in collaboration with teachers, parents, administrators, citizens, and students,” said Governor Kemp. “This process will ensure we eliminate the remnants of Common Core, reject the status quo, and put students first.”
The Georgia Department of Education sent out a survey in July that was created to generate feedback on the current math and ELA standards. The survey remains open through next Friday, September 6. DOE officials announced recently that more than 17,000 Georgians – most of them teachers and parents – have already responded to the survey.
Kemp announced that his office and the GaDOE will convene a Citizens Review Committee to ensure Georgians have a voice in the process, a Working Committee of Teachers to analyze the feedback generated by the survey, and an Academic Review Committee to ensure the quality of the standards. Superintendent Woods will consider these proposals and make a final recommendation to the State Board of Education for a vote.
“We need to ensure that our K-12 standards are age- and developmentally appropriate, and present a realistic amount of content for teachers to deliver in one year,” said Woods. “We are launching an intentional process to create truly Georgia-owned and developed standards, and I’m extremely appreciative of Governor Kemp’s leadership moving us in that direction.”
This will be a staggered process which will include time for teacher training and school transitions, to revise and implement the standards.
