The bill that would repeal use of the Common Core state standards in Oklahoma was signed out of the House Common Education Conference Committee Wednesday.
State Rep. Jason Nelson (R-Oklahoma City), who presented the bill for House Speaker Jeff Hickman (R-Fairview), said the bill would prohibit implementation of Common Core and sets up a “firewall” that would cease federal or private control of education.
The bill would allow the state to go back to the Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS) standards during the four-year transition period before adoption of new standards. The new standards are to be developed by the State Department of Education in conjunction with higher education.
In the meantime, Nelson said, the State Regents for Higher Education are to certify the PASS standards as college and career ready so the state may have the opportunity to receive an extension of the No Child Left Behind waiver for the upcoming school year.
Nelson explained that any testing given in the next four years must be aligned to PASS objectives and not Common Core. He added that any standards approval would go through the administrative rules process.
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