Florida is one of the 45 states adopting the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and assessing these standards over the next two years. The standards were put together using public input from the parents, teachers, students and education professionals, business leaders and lawmakers.
The new standards will require students to master fewer education standards at a higher cognitive level. They will emphasize critical thinking and problem solving. The rigorous standards will prepare students and allow them to compete in a global economy. Miami-Dade County Public Schools has been implementing the CCSS in grades K-12 for the past two years.
This school year, the school district is offering a blended curriculum in grades K-12, blending both the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards (NGSSS) and the CCSS in English Language Arts (ELA) and mathematics. Students will be assessed in ELA and math in the Spring of 2014 on the NGSSS via the FCAT 2.0 and End Of Course (EOC) examinations.
In the 2014-2015 school year, M-DCPS will be strictly implementing the CCSS. The school district is awaiting word from the Florida Department of Education on the assessment that will be used.
For a sample of what students will be working on this year, topics for parents to discuss with their child's teacher and how they can help their child learn at home, visit https://pta.org/content.cfm?ItemNumber=2909.
Guides are available by grade level in both English and Spanish.