Core standards | The Salt Lake Tribune

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

I commend Rep. Jim Bird, R-West Jordan, for sponsoring HJR8, Joint Resolution on the Benefits of Adopting Common Core Standards. I am a retired secondary language arts and social studies teacher and have studied the Utah Core Standards and am impressed with them.

They embody what I have always felt was important to teach and develop — reading, writing, listening and speaking skills, not just in English class, but in all subject areas. These standards are well-sequenced for developing analytical and interpretative competencies and applying them to real-world problems.

College and career readiness are educational goals that are in the title of several bills before the current Legislature. College readiness, particularly, needs to be measured by national standards, since that will determine college admission.

The Governor's Education Excellence Commission, the Prosperity 2020 coalition of businesses and other business and civic groups have endorsed the standards as integral to improving education and thereby our economy.

The Utah Core standards are not perfect. Nothing is. Only by participation in the national Common Core Standards can Utah be part of the ongoing revision process. HJR8 explains why this is important for the students of Utah.

Lea Cotter

Salt Lake City