(Continued from page 3)

teach sex education in kindergarten. No, the Qur'an is not a mandatory text, and the Bible is not banned. No, the standards are not mandated by the federal government.
• "I'm really glad people are calling," he said. "When they call, I get a chance to talk to them. I can explain why the Common Core is so important."
• A Gallup Poll released in August suggested that most Americans aren't getting reliable information about the Common Core standards. In fact, 62 percent of Americans had never heard of it, including 55 percent of public school parents.
• And of those who had heard of it, many had key facts about it wrong (for example, many thought--incorrectly--the federal government requires states to adopt the standards).
• Even after the misinformation about the Common Core is cleared away, debate about its purpose and how to implement it remains. Here's an overview of what's happening and what's at stake.
•
• A state-level initiative
• The Common Core standards began from conversations that state education leaders and governors were having about their schools in the late 2000s. First, it was clear that U.S. students were not doing well compared to students in other countries, and years of reform and effort hadn't moved the needle much.
• Second, because each state had different standards, what the typical high school graduate knew when going on to college or into the work force varied greatly.
• The results of 2012 ACT scores "show alarming gaps between the knowledge

(Continued on page 5)