Florida must do away with “the vestiges of Common Core,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday, referring to the public school curriculum standards the state adopted nearly nine years ago. "We stuck with Common Core then we re-branded it … it’s all the same. It all needs to be looked at, it all needs to be scrutinized,” the governor said during an announcement at Ida S. Baker High School in Cape Coral, flanked by commissioner of education Richard Corcoran and local school administrators. DeSantis announced an executive order asking Corcoran to spend a year creating new state curriculum standards, which would then be presented to the Legislature for the 2020 session. Common Core is a set of standards that sets goals for what K-12 students should learn in language arts and math by the end of each grade level. They were designed to be more rigorous than what many states previously had in place and were adopted by Florida in 2010 as part of a national effort to boost American standards for education after the U.S. was falling behind other countries. Today, Florida’s standards are similar to Common Core but not identical. State officials, urged on by conservative groups, tweaked and renamed them in 2014. Despite criticism by some that Common Core is a federal mandate, the standards were developed by private nonprofit groups and state education departments and then adopted by 45 states. Local districts then altered their lesson plans to meet those standards. READ MORE: PolitiFact: Distortions on Common Core But DeSantis said Common Core inspired concerns by parents who felt they were “imposed federally.” “Also, you would have situations where the parents did not like some of the curriculum, I mean they had trouble even doing basic math to help their kids,” he said. “With Common Core a lot of people just didn’t feel like anyone was listening to them and I think that’s a big, big problem.” This is far from the first time Florida’s leaders have considered a reboot to its standards. Schools began phasing in Common Core in 2011-12. In 2013, Gov. Rick Scott called for public hearings to hear out complaints about the standards and also pulled out of some of the testing developed by national groups to support Common Core. But state Sen. Manny Diaz, R-Hialeah, said this time is different, because it appears DeSantis is looking for a thoughtful overhaul to present to the Legislature rather than some of the smaller, but rapid, changes of the past. Scott’s changes to testing in 2014, for example, left the state “scrambling” for a new test, Diaz said. “I appreciate the pragmatic approach of having a year ramp-up and then come back with recommendations, as opposed to last time we had to do the change of the test and ... we had to rush into it. You never have great product when you do that,” he said. Miami-Dade school superintendent Alberto Carvalho said he supports the review and is encouraged by DeSantis' comments that the new standards could lead to a reduction of high-stakes testing. “I applaud the governor’s decision to bring about a significant review and analysis of current standards, which are very, very identical to Common Core,” he said. “My hope is it considers the voice of teachers and practitioners of education, secondly that it is done transparently with the opinion and witnessed by parents.” The Florida Education Association, the state teacher’s union, released a statement from its president, Fedrick Ingram, who expressed similar sentiment, saying that “a deliberate look at what students must know is always appropriate.” DeSantis also said the new standards, which Corcoran will work to craft as long as the state Board of Education is in agreement, should make civics education even more of a “central part” of what students learn so they can “discharge the duties of citizenship." Civics education and learning the Constitution was one of DeSantis' common refrains on the campaign trail, even though students already are required to receive instruction on those subjects. READ MORE: Ron DeSantis and others want to put the Constitution ‘back’ in Florida schools. It’s already there. This was DeSantis' second education policy announcement in two days, after he made a stop in Tampa on Wednesday to propose beefing up Florida’s vocational training programs. Miami Herald staff writer Colleen Wright contributed to this report.<doc-sep>Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Thursday he will get rid of Common Core in the state and wants to have parents and teachers help implement a revised set of standards in 2020. “Common Core has failed teachers, parents, and our children,” DeSantis wrote on Twitter Thursday. “That’s why I am issuing an Executive Order to eliminate Common Core in Florida. We will streamline standardized testing, make civics a priority in schools and increase the literacy rate.” Common Core has failed teachers, parents, and our children. That’s why I am issuing an Executive Order to eliminate Common Core in Florida. We will streamline standardized testing, make civics a priority in schools and increase the literacy rate. pic.twitter.com/dp5mnabiit — Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantisFL) January 31, 2019 Common Core aimed to establish high academic standards in K-12 English and math. Critics of Common Core said it was too rigid, confusing teaching methods for parents and takes away control from locals, according to Fox 13. DeSantis wants to implement a new plan, with the input of parents and teachers, in 2020. (RELATED: Here’s Why Common Core And ‘No Child Left Behind’ Didn’t Work, According To Betsy DeVos) “I told you I was going to do something about this,” DeSantis said at a press conference, WFTV reported. Broward County Public Schools superintendent Robert Runice, whose district experienced the Parkland shooting in February 2018, is on board with DeSantis. “I welcome the opportunity to work with the governor and the commissioner of Education on revising standards and regulations to give local districts greater flexibility on curriculum and testing,” Runcie said in a statement, according to Local 10. “We need fundamental reforms in public education that will give our teachers the freedom they need to better engage students. It is time to reduce our reliance on a testing culture that is more about ranking students on their potential, when our focus should be more on developing their potential.” DeSantis’s office did not immediately respond to The Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment. Follow Neetu on Twitter Send tips to: neetu@dailycallernewsfoundation.org Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.<doc-sep>Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has announced an executive order to eliminate the Common Core Standards – which were rebranded in the state as the Florida Standards. Citing the frustration of parents he heard while campaigning for governor, DeSantis, a Republican, said during a press conference Thursday at Ida S. Baker High School in Cape Coral: I had a lot of parents who were frustrated because they didn’t understand some of the math. So, let’s try to get this right. We want to be very high quality, we want to demand excellence, but I think we want to do that in a way that’s responsive to some of the concerns we’ve had over the many number of years. A report at WWSB noted that DeSantis would be instructing Florida’s education commissioner to “provide a road map to Florida-based standards, eliminating Common Core, as well as having the commissioner determine how to increase the quality of instructional curriculum, streamlining testing to measure success not teach to a test, and identifying ways to make civics education a priority in Florida.” “You really need to understand what makes America the country it is,” DeSantis said, adding: We’re not a country where everyone has the same religious denomination or the same ethnic heritage. What unites, or what’s supposed to, is the ideas and certain principles that the country was founded on, that you see reflected in the Constitution, that have really been the focal points for a lot of the great debates we’ve had in the country’s history. “I think it’s important that when we’re sending some of these students out, they’re not only prepared for a career or for higher education, they’re prepared to discharge the duties of citizenship,” the governor said. The executive order states the state education commissioner must complete his review and submit it to the governor for approval by January 1, 2020.<doc-sep>
Florida's Republican governor plans to sign an executive order to rid Florida of the last vestiges of Common Core. Common Core is a national education initiative that set academic standards for students in math and language arts. Florida adopted Common Core standards in 2010, then came up with an altered version of the initiative in 2014 and called it "Florida Standards." "I think our standards will be much higher in many respects, but I think it will be standards that are reflective of what folks are looking for," said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, announcing his plan Thursday in Cape Coral. "It will be more geared toward knowledge than maybe just teaching to a test." DeSantis' plan would mark a bigger break with the national standards than Florida has made in the past. Former GOP Gov. Jeb Bush was a big backer of Common Core, helping push the state to sign on. But under President Barack Obama's administration, adopting the standards became one way for a state to get federal money – and conservatives began to view the standards as federal overreach. Common Core also became synonymous with an increase in standardized testing. One view: Bill Gates commends Common Core Another view:Common Core is driving too many teachers from the profession When Florida made changes to its state standards in 2014, many of them were minor, but politicians such as former Gov. Rick Scott were able to say Common Core was going away. Critics said the core of Common Core continued under a different name. DeSantis said he decided to eliminate the remaining pieces of Common Core after he heard complaints when he was running for governor. "With Common Core, a lot of people just didn't feel like anyone was listening to them," he said. The governor said he has asked Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran to spend the year coming up with authentic Florida-based standards. DeSantis also plans to require Corcoran to: Find ways to increase the quality of instructional curriculum in Florida. Suggest innovative ways to streamline testing in schools and make sure the testing is measuring success. Identify ways to make civic education a priority in Florida. The final plan would go before the Legislature for approval, DeSantis said. Eliminating Common Core will make teachers' jobs easier, said Greg Adkins, superintendent in Lee County. "Teachers have to teach rapidly across many standards and many areas of content in a single semester, a single year," he said. "This hopefully gets down to what's essential that a kid has to master and learn extremely well, so they will have that learning for the rest of their life." Karen Effrem, executive director of the Florida Stop Common Core Coalition, said she is expecting a mixed reaction to the governor's plan. "I think parents are going to be thrilled because they are finally feeling like, hopefully, their concerns are being addressed and not just a dog and pony show and rebranding like has happened over the last several years," she said. Still, she said, some are worried Florida is abandoning high standards. Follow Thyrie Bland on Twitter: @Thyrie