Gov. Jindal Seeks to Block Common Core Test
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Gov. Bobby Jindal has issued an executive order requiring competitive bidding for public school standardized tests, an apparent attempt to derail Louisiana's use of tests linked to Common Core education standards.
The Department of Education planned to use Common Core-tied tests known as PARCC for students in third through eighth grades. The Republican governor says requiring a competitive bid for the test will stop use of PARCC.
Superintendent of Education John White and state education board chairman Chas Roemer disagree, saying they intend to continue the roll-out of Common Core and plan to use the PARCC test under their existing authority.
Where the dispute heads next is unclear.
Common Core standards are English and math benchmarks adopted by most states. Jindal says the standards amount to a federal education takeover.