May 30, 2008
Director of Communications
(804) 371-2420
Julie Grimes
Public Information Officer
(804) 225-2775
Standards of Learning Meet All Criteria for Clarity, Specificity and Content
Virginia was the only state to receive a perfect score for academic standards from the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) in the union's Sizing Up Standards 2008 report.
The AFT evaluated Virginia's nationally recognized Standards of Learning (SOL) and the academic standards of other states for clarity, specificity and content. The report by the nation's second-largest teachers union cited Virginia as the only state in the nation to meet the AFT's criteria for strong standards in English, mathematics, science and history at all grade levels and in all subject areas.
"This recognition is a tribute to the hundreds of teachers, academics and thoughtful citizens of diverse backgrounds from every corner of the commonwealth who have contributed to the process of developing and revising the Standards of Learning since 1995," said Board of Education President Mark E. Emblidge.
"The AFT report recognizes that a strong education system begins with strong standards." said Superintendent of Public Instruction Billy K. Cannaday Jr. "The Standards of Learning set rigorous expectations for teaching and learning and form the core of the instructional program in Virginia's public schools."
Virginia also is one of only three states praised in the report for weaving specific standards for United States and world history into the early elementary grades.
Sizing Up Standards 2008 is available online from the American Federation of Teachers at www.aft.org/news/2008/standards.htm.
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