Comment on Group could recommend new academic standards in Mississippi

By Emily Wagster Pettus and Jeff Amy Associated Press JACKSON – A bill headed to Gov. Phil Bryant would establish a group to study whether Mississippi should modify or walk away from Common Core academic standards. The House and Senate on Tuesday both passed the final version of Senate Bill 2161. If Bryant signs the bill into law, an 11-member commission would make recommendations about academic standards to the state Board of Education by December. Mississippi has spent millions of dollars implementing Common Core, which seeks to teach students to think more analytically. Many conservatives, including Republican Bryant, say they fear Common Core could lead to too much federal intervention in Mississippi schools.