College- & Career-Ready Standards and Assessments

Standards are shared expectations for what all students should know and be able to do. Assessments are common yardsticks for measuring progress. Together, they tell us where all students are and where school systems need to get them.

In recent years, states have raised their sights by putting in place new, more rigorous standards and assessments that better reflect the demands all young people will face after high school — whether in two- or four-year colleges, the workforce, or the armed services.

This has the potential to engage all students — rather than just a privileged few — in rich and rigorous content. We’re working to realize this potential by:

• Advocating for high-quality, aligned instructional supports for all teachers, especially those serving struggling students;
• Understanding which students are college- and career-ready and the barriers that prevent others from reaching that readiness;
• Sharing the best practices of schools working to implement more rigorous standards; and
• Helping educators create assignments that are aligned to standards.

Equity in Motion: Do Classroom Assignments Reflect College- and Career-Ready Standards?

Meandering Toward Graduation: Transcript Outcomes of High School Graduates

The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015

Statement from The Education Trust on CCSSO & CGCS Commitment on High-Quality Assessments

Instructional Supports: The Missing Piece in State Education Standards

Slowing Down to Speed Up

Implementation of Common Core State Standards: Roles for Advocates

Curriculum vs. Standards in the Common Core Debate