Va. officials won’t scrap Standards of Learning

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia’s Board of Education says it has no plans for the state to scrap its Standards of Learning program for a new, common set of national curriculum guidelines.

The board unanimously adopted a statement Thursday that it isn’t worth replacing the 15-year-old Standards of Learning, which the board says already provide clear and rigorous curriculum standards. It also opposes a requirement that states adopt Common Core State Standards to be competitive in federal grant programs.

The Common Core State Standards initiative aims to define the knowledge and skills K-12 students should demonstrate so they can succeed in college courses and in workforce-training programs. The project aims to replace a hodgepodge of educational goals varying wildly from state to state with a uniform set of expectations.

The board does support the development of internationally benchmarked standards for states to adopt outright, or to use as models to improve their own standards. Virginia will be able to incorporate Common Core standards where warranted during the SOL revision process, the board said.

Virginia didn’t get any funding in the first round and declined to compete in the second and final round of Race to the Top, a U.S. Department of Education program that let states compete for billions in funding to improve schools. The competition encourages states to adopt common national standards.

The state’s investment in the SOL far exceeds the $250 million Virginia potentially could have received by abandoning the SOL and trying to compete in the second phase of Race to the Top, the board said in its statement.