Content standards define what students should know and be able to do. Changes in the college and career landscape, as well as new findings in educational research necessitate the periodic review and potential revision of academic standards. Furthermore, there is the continual need to ensure that content standards and the assessments used to measure students’ proficiency in attaining those standards are aligned. In recent years, Rhode Island has transitioned to a new suite of state assessments which will be in place until 2029 as outlined in Rhode Island law RIGL§ 16.22.30-33, passed in 2019. With the passing of RIGL§ 16.22.30-33, RIDE saw an opportunity to revisit the state’s content standards in order to better align them with mandated assessment requirements, to clarify any vague language present in the standards, and in the case of history and social studies, to undergo a total revision.

RIDE has completed a review and revision of the content standards for English language arts and mathematics, resulting in the endorsement of the Rhode Island Core Standards for ELA/Literacy and Mathematics by the Council on Elementary and Secondary Education on March 9, 2021. The review process was open and consultative and will be replicated for science and technology, history and social studies, world languages, and the arts. Specifically, during the process, RIDE solicited public comment and drew on the content expertise of review committees composed of Rhode Island educators. Feedback was used to craft sets of content standards that are focused, coherent, and rigorous and are designed to ready students for college and career.