Nebraska's having second thoughts about Common Core standards

Fearing a federal power grab in the making, several top Nebraska elected education officials are having second thoughts about whether to join other states adopting common K-12 math and English standards. Four members of the eight-person Nebraska Board of Education expressed concerns July 7 about adopting the so-called Common Core State Standards.

Not doing so could make it harder for Nebraska to get federal education money. It could also subject Nebraska to academic criticism. Nebraska initially endorsed the 48-state effort to create national standards — Alaska and Texas did not participate. The core standards were released in June.

Jim Scheer, vice president of the Nebraska Board of Education, said the state shouldn’t adopt the standards.Although states banded together to write the standards, the Obama administration has gotten involved, he said. The 48-state effort was “hijacked by the federal department of education,” Scheer said. “We all needed dollars.”There is no mechanism for states to update or control the standards, he said. Read more in the Omaha World Herald online.