Politics

George Will on his Common Core opposition: It ‘inevitably will drive curriculum’

Jamie Weinstein Senior Writer
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George Will says he is no fan of Common Core.

The conservative columnist explained his opposition during an extensive interview with The Daily Caller on politics, culture and his new book, “A Nice Little Place on the North Side: Wrigley Field at One Hundred.” TheDC will be featuring segments from the interview over the next several weeks.

“Common Core is often called a state based, non-Washington organized enterprise. Well, sort of,” Will explained. “It’s driven in no small measure by funding and encouragement from the Department of Education, which should go away. It inevitably – inevitably – will drive curriculum.”

“The president will say, ‘if you like your curriculums, you can keep them, period.’ Don’t believe him,” he continued. “They are already aligning the SAT and ACT tests with the expectations of the Common Core standards. If there is a quintessentially state and local responsibility, it is education, grades K through 12.”

The Common Core State Standards Initiative defines itself as “a state-led effort that established a single set of clear educational standards for kindergarten through 12th grade in English language arts and mathematics that states voluntarily adopt,” according to its website. While 45 states and the District of Columbia initially adopted Common Core’s standards in full, in March Indiana became the first state to reverse course and formally opt out.

Conservative critics of Common Core fear it will become a federal takeover of education, complete with a national curriculum. While the National Governors Association was the driving force behind developing the Common Core standards, President Obama’s Department of Education has since become a major advocate.

See previous segments from TheDC’s interview with George Will below:

George Will on whether Obamacare can be repealed

George Will explains why America’s top conservative commentators love baseball

George Will on Stephen Colbert 

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