Jindal announced this week that he is taking Louisiana out of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Career (PARCC) and the Common Core State Standards Initiative.
But why would he do that?
He was once highly in favor of Common Core. So what has so drastically changed his mind?
This is what he had to say earlier this week, “Proponents weren’t up front about federal involvement in PARCC and Common Core. Now that we understand the federal overreach involved, we need to slow down and make the right decision. Some Common Core proponents suggest that we cannot have high standards without Common Core. That is a false statement. We need a Louisiana test that ensures children are performing at high levels so they can compete not only around the country, but around the world. We can certainly have high standards without giving up control of Louisiana’s education system to the federal government.”
Education Secretary Arne Duncan was not happy with Jindal, and said the governor’s position was about politics, not education.
Jindal’s responded by saying, “We will not be bullied by the federal government.”
Jindal isn’t the first Governor to expel Common Core. Indiana Gov. Mike Pence was the first. He signed legislation in March to repeal the standards. Gov. Mary Fallin was next, signing a bill repealing Common Core standards. This was a reversal of her previous support of Common Core. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley signed a bill last month revoking the standards. Her statements affirmed that she agreed it was too much Federal control.
Missouri and North Carolina are two more states considering rejection of Common Core.
So what lies at the root of this movement to reverse previous support for Common Core by so many states? Jindal summed it up succinctly by saying, “It is this simple. The Federal government would like to assert control of our educational system and watch implementation of a one-size-fits-all set of standards that raises a lot of serious concerns. We are very alarmed about choice and local control over curriculum being taken away from our parents and our educators.”
It’s what parents and teachers have been saying about Common Core from the start.
Still, there are those Governors who insist that the Federal government knows best when it comes to education. South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard is a stanch supporter of Common Core, in spite of his own Party platform rejecting it. His predecessor, former Governor Mike Rounds is also a strong defender of the program. That might not be surprising, since he was a member of the National Governors conference that help build and implement the program to begin with.
We can only cheer for Jindal and others who are rejecting the Federal takeover of education, and pray that others will soon see the light!
***Gordon Howie is an author, host of Liberty Today TV and CEO of Life and Liberty Media***
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