Wednesday, September 8th, 2010


Common Core Standards
The Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them. The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers. With American students fully prepared for the future, our communities will be best positioned to compete successfully in the global economy.
SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium
The SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) is a collection of states that have been working collaboratively since December 2009 to develop a student assessment system aligned to a common core of academic content standards to apply for a Race-to-the-Top Assessment grant. As of June 17, the Consortium comprises 31 states submitting the grant application to the U.S. Department of Education.