Kentucky's Education Commissioner, Terry Holliday, asked Monday for a public review of the Common Core standards, encouraging Kentucky citizens to recommend changes to the state board of education.
Kentucky was one of the first of 45 states to adopt the standards two years ago, but since then the Common Core program has come under intense scrutiny from both parents and teachers. Some have criticized the standards' development, which was hasty and underwent little public review, while others find the standards' content lacking.
Holliday encouraged opponents of the standards to "Tell us what's wrong with the standard and how to fix it," rather than simply calling them a "Communist conspiracy."
The Courier-Journal reports that some Kentucky schools saw a plunge in test scores after taking on new Common Core-aligned standardized tests:
After Kentucky began using common-core aligned tests, scores at many schools dropped. But Holliday on Monday noted the state was making significant gains in graduation rates, ACT scores and college and career readiness rates.
He said the state will take the review suggestions and take them to the state board of education.
"It's a process that I hope will change the conversation," he said.
Holliday will take suggestions at http://kentucky.