Bill to repeal new Arizona standards fails in Senate

Today the Arizona Senate rejected a measure that would have caused chaos in Arizona classrooms. Thanks to Senators Driggs, McComish, Pierce, Reagan and Worsley and all thirteen Democratic Senators, the efforts of Arizona’s teachers and school leaders will not be interrupted.

SB 1310 failed to pass 18-12, but would have prohibited Arizona schools from implementing or “effectively implementing” the Arizona’s College and Career Ready Standards (Common Core). These standards were adopted in 2010, and schools have been diligently working to implement them ever since. And, as the five recent Arizona Educational Foundation Teachers of the Year testified before the Governor’s AZ Ready Council this morning, the standards are working.

As the 2013 Teacher of the Year Nancy Lindblom said, “we have never seen a set of standards that challenges students and offers them the education they deserve like the Arizona College and Career Ready Standards do.”

That’s why Arizona teachers overwhelmingly support the standards, why parents are strongly in support of the standards, and why the business community has presented a united front on this issue: because this is what is right for our kids.

The battle isn't over- there are other bills that would threaten the progress we've made, and we still need to secure funding for a new assessment aligned to the standards. But for today, we thank the 18 members of the Arizona Senate who supported the efforts of teachers and schools over the last four years by voting “No” on SB 1310.