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Mike Kirst Writes Memorandum on Common Core and State Policy

Portrait
Mike Kirst
Day
March 2013

Mike Kirst, president of the California State Board of Education and Professor Emeritus of Education and Business Administration at Stanford University, authored a policy memorandum outlining the impact of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) on key state education policy areas.  He argues that to successfully implement these standards which hold a new vision for teaching and learning in the 21st century, California must build 21st century capacity in its educational institutions and policies.  Kirst discusses how the state must re-think its policies and programs in areas such as assessment, accountability, finance, preschool, special education, and teacher preparation, professional development, and evaluation.  In addition to aligning its K-12 educational policies with the CCSS, Kirst argues that California must harmonize policies between K-12 and post-secondary institutions to reflect the changing standards.