Governor Bill Haslam unveiled a website, https://apps.tn.gov/tcas/, where Tennesseans can review and comment on the state’s current K-12 academic standards.
Academic standards set grade-specific goals that define what students are expected to know and be able to do by the end of a given grade or course. There are more than 1,100 for English language arts and more than 900 for mathematics in Tennessee.
Every Tennessean now has the opportunity to go online, review the more than 2,000 individual ELA and math standards, and provide specific feedback about them.
“Tennessee is making historic progress in academic achievement, and this discussion is about having the best possible standards as we continue that important work,” Governor Haslam said.
“This valuable tool allows Tennesseans to contribute feedback on the current standards, adding their voice directly to the review process to improve student achievement.”
Following an education summit in September that Governor Haslam co-hosted with Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey and House Speaker Beth Harwell, the governor announced last month a public review process in partnership with the State Board of Education designed to recruit input from educators and citizens from across the state. The standards review website is part of that process.
Standards are typically reviewed in Tennessee every six years. The current standards are now in their fourth year. "The governor believes that with all of the conversation about standards happening in the state and country it’s an appropriate time to look at them again," officials said.
The Southern Regional Education Board, as a third party and independent resource, will collect the data from the website in the Spring and then turn that information over to be reviewed and analyzed by two committees and six advisory teams comprised of professional Tennessee educators.
The advisory teams will review Tennessee’s current standards and gather input to make recommendations to the two committees, which will then propose changes to the State Board of Education.