Implementation of the Common Core State Standards: Recommendations for the Department of Defense Education Activity Schools (Occasional Paper)

The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) recently adopted the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). This paper draws on prior literature on the implementation of large-scale educational reforms to frame CCSS implementation in terms of eight core tasks, each tailored to the DoDEA context. These tasks are based on a synthesis of scale-up efforts from 15 diverse, large-scale reforms. The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) recently joined 45 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands in adopting the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), implementation of which requires a transition of curriculum, instruction, professional development, and assessments from the current system of standards to a new one that promotes higher-order thinking and communication skills. In light of this adoption, the authors draw on prior literature on the implementation of large-scale educational reforms to frame CCSS implementation in terms of eight core tasks, each tailored to the DoDEA context. These tasks are based on a synthesis of scale-up efforts from 15 diverse, large-scale reforms The CCSS and the current status of their implementation Gaps between current systems and CCSS implementation Existing guidelines for implementing the CCSS A reform framework for implementing CCSS within DoDEA Developing and providing implementation support Ensuring high quality implementation in each school site Evaluating and improving the intervention Obtaining the needed financial support Building organizational capacity Marketing Create approaches to meet local context needs Sustaining the reform over time Summary of findings and recommendations.