Though most states have adopted the Common Core Standards, analysis into thousands of teacher assessments from six different middle schools in two urban districts provide an early indication that they aren't necessarily being implemented.

Education Trust, a nonprofit dedicated to closing achievement gaps, analyzed more than 1,500 different assessments from the six schools studied and concluded its findings indicated implementation of Common Core Standards is not exactly happening.

According to Education Trust's report, "Checking In: Do Classroom Assignments Reflect Today's Higher Standards?" fewer than 4 out of 10 or 38% of classroom assignments were aligned to grade-appropriate standards.

Further, it found that only 4 percent of the assessments studied pushed students to higher thinking levels; [m]any assessments show an attempt at rigor, but this is largely at the surface level," the report said.

The report painted an overall dismal picture of the quality of assessments being distributed to students despite claiming to be aligned with Common Core Standards.

"Opportunities for students to engage in relevant academic discussions rarely appeared. Most of the discussions were brief activities that partially aligned with the Common Core's speaking and listening standards," it said.

Though, according to The Washington Post, "[c]ritics might quibble with how the organization judged assignments, but the analysis is a good reminder that the Common Core standards have been translated differently in different places."

"Some school districts have spent years preparing for the transition to new standards, for example, while others have offered teachers little in the way of meaningful training and professional development."

The report hopes to encourage school leaders and educators to take a closer look at Common Core Standards and the assessments distributed to teach them, as Education Trust believes proper implementation of the standards will lead to increased student achievement as a whole.

Read the full report here and comment with your thoughts below.

Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

09/02/2015