The head of New York’s public higher education system says the Common Core education standards better prepare students for college.
SUNY Chancellor Nancy Zimpher has joined a national coalition of 200 colleges in 33 states, called Higher Ed for Higher Standards, advocating for the continued use of Common Core standards for primary and high school education.
The new standards have been criticized for their poor rollout, but Zimpher says they’ll increase a student’s chances of completing college on time.
"When students are not ready to do college work, we often call that remediation or developmental education," she said. "And we have too many universities across the country who are essentially teaching twice."
As a consequence, Zimpher said, students who have to repeat courses or take remedial classes have a lower chance of earning a degree or completing college in four years.
Zimpher and the group acknowledge the poor rollout of the Common Core, but she says the standards set a very high bar for learning.