By Monique Roth

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – A vote that could have abandoned the use of the highly controversial Common Core State Standards was rejected by the Louisiana House Education committee on Wednesday.

Common Core standards, which have been adopted in most states, were created to serve as a way to compare states’ performance and add more rigorous training for students. Lawmakers on the committee voted 12-7 against House Bill 381 that would have had Louisiana draw up its own state-specific education standards in place of Common Core. A 12-7 vote was also cast against House Bill 558, which would have eliminated the Partnership for Assessment of Readi     ness for College and Careers test.

“I am relieved that the House Education Committee decided to vote against uncertainty,” said George when referring to House Bill 381. “This bill would have set Louisiana students and educators back three to four years while we waited on a panel to develop new standards.”

George said whether people agree or not with the implementation of Common Core, the standards are rigorous and lead to a path of college and career readiness.

“I am equally satisfied with the defeat of House Bill 381 because PARCC is the best way to measure students against the Common Core State Standards,” said George. “Louisianans assisted in the development of this instrument and we were able to vet PARCC items in anticipation of its rollout in 2014-2015.”

The 2014 Louisiana Survey, conducted an   nually by the Public Policy Research Lab and sponsored by the Reilly Center for Media & Public Affairs in the LSU Manship School of Mass Communication, recently revealed that Louisiana residents are largely unaware of the Common Core educational standards.

“The Louisiana Sur vey shows that only one in two Louisiana residents has heard of the Common Core,” said Amy Reynolds, director of the Reilly Center and associate dean of graduate studies at the Manship School.