Although 45 states have adopted the Common Core Standards created by governors and state education officials, the effort has begun to raise concerns from parents.

“Common Core allows us as educators to move away from factoid, trivial questions, more towards the nature of problem solving. What is taught is not different, it just involves deeper understanding,” Principal Jeremy Mitchell said.

The purpose of the Common Core is to better prepare students for the real world through an increased teaching of problem solving in the subjects of math and English in K-12 education. Plans for the editing and implementation of the Common Core standards were in the works starting around 2010.

“There’s been some perception that Common Core was controlled by the federal government, but in reality it is not much different from what Parkway has been doing for years. It also seems to have become a political piece as well,” Mitchell said.

Despite outcries, the idea of meeting and exceeding state standards is not an unheard of concept, particularly for the Parkway School District, and Parkway West High. According to the 2011 Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) results, Parkway West scored an 86.1% proficiency in communication arts, while the state average was only 75.5%. Additionally, 83% of Parkway West High School students tested proficient in mathematics, over 10% above the state average of 72.5%.

“I really don’t think these standards will change the level at which West High students are at.  I believe that we already covered the common core topics and went well beyond that.  The common core won’t change our approach and philosophy in our department,” math department head Jason Townsend said.

As far as politics go, Missouri tends to lean right, and conservative views have shaped legislature in the past. Such views are the major opposition to the Common Core Initiative, as some believe it was pushed as part of President Obama’s Race to the Top programs, aimed towards improving public education.

According to the vice president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Michael Petrilli, “The Common Core is a great conservative victory. At the end of the day, the facts matter. We hope that Missouri will be guided by them and stay the course with Common Core. It’s really a victory for everyone.”

While Parkway students are well prepared for the academic rigors that will be addressed on the Common Core Standardized Tests, for other districts, the higher level thinking and logical reasoning required to answer the questions will be new.

“We have been teaching these skills at West High already, but the expectation for every grade level is more specific than before.  The ability to read and communicate well is critical in adult life, so in general, the skills in Common Core for English are ones worth having,” English department head Julie Bode said.