Does the Common Core Have a Common Effect? - An Exploration of Effects on Academically Vulnerable Students

Oct 15, 2026

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Policymakers analyze how the Common Core State Content Standards (CC) influenced student achievement and the size of achievement gaps. Using merged data on CC preparation and implementation with student-level National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) records, the study compares early versus late CC implementors in a difference-in-differences design. Results show an initial positive math effect overall, with a large gain for economically advantaged students, and no detectable initial effect for economically disadvantaged students.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages18

Reading Time45 min

AccessFree to download

Study aim

Research design and data sources

Findings

Initial effects by student subgroup

Policy implications

AERA Open January-December 2021, Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 1–18 DOI: 10. 1177/23328584211010727 Article reuse guidelines: [sagepub.com/journals-permissions](sagepub.com/journals-permissions)[ ](sagepub.com/journals-permissions)© The Author(s) 2021. [https://journals.sagepub.com/home/ero](https://journals.sagepub.com/home/ero) Does the Common Core Have a Common Effect? An Exploration of Effects on Academically Vulnerable Students Joshua Bleiberg Brown University Policymakers have long sought to raise expectations for students through standards-based reform. I examine the extent to which the Common Core State Content Standards (CC) affected student achievement and the size of achievement gaps. I merge together data on preparation for and implementation of the CC with the National Assessment of Educational Progress student-level data. To identify the effect of CC on student outcomes, I compare early implementors of the CC to late implementors of the CC in a difference-in-differences framework. I find the initial effect of the CC on math scores was positive. The CC had a large positive initial effect on economically advantaged students but no detectable initial effect on economically disadvantaged students. Raising state expectations without addressing the structural issues burdening economically disadvantaged students may result in unintended consequences. Keywords: accountability, achievement gap, educational policy, NAEP, policy analysis, quasi-experimental analysis, standard setting In 2010, a national alliance of states moved rapidly to adopt the Common Core State Content Standards (CC) due to concerns about low expectations for students. The popularity of the CC quickly declined because of insufficient support for implementation and the belief that reforms to content standards would harm students. About a quarter of the states that adopted the standards announced substantial revisions or revoked the adoption of the CC. Many modifications to the CC occurred before the standards were implemented in classrooms. But state policymakers could not have judged whether the standards benefitted students prior to their implementation. Today, policymakers continue to debate whether or not to continue using the CC. The CC has received renewed attention because state laws mandate that states consider changes to content standards every 7 to 10 years. I provide new evidence about the effects of CC on student outcomes and achievement gaps that will inform decisions about future changes to the CC. The CC did influence teacher’s instruction and classrooms. The vast majority of teachers reported using CC-aligned textbooks (Blazar et al., 2019) . Nationwide the preponderance of teachers (66%) reported that alignment to CC was one of the three most important influences on curricula, programs, and/or instructional tools used in their classroom practices (Opfer et al., 2016) . Educators did not receive sufficient supports to implement the CC (Xu & Cepa, 2018) and superintendents reported challenges related to finding adequate staff and financial resources to support all the necessary implementation activities (Rentner, 2013) . Staff from high-poverty districts reported less confidence in their capacity to implement the CC (A. B. Brown & Clift, 2010; Finnan & Domenech, 2014) . Questions about whether the CC content standards improved student outcomes and the size of the relationship has benefitted students remain unresolved (Polikoff, 2017) . Studies have found the relationship between CC implementation and student outcomes is mixed (Allensworth et al., 2021; Loveless, 2014, 2015, 2016; Gao & Lafortune, 2019; Song et al., 2019; Xu & Cepa, 2018) . In particular, it is unknown whether the CC contributed to the closure of achievement gaps (O’Day, & Smith, 2019; Polikoff, 2017) . I use the student-level National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) to estimate the initial effect of CC on student outcomes. I identify the initial eff

FAQs

How does the study evaluate the effect of the Common Core?

It merges information about CC preparation and implementation with student-level NAEP data and uses a difference-in-differences framework comparing early and late CC implementors.

What is the initial effect of the Common Core on math scores?

The study finds the initial effect of the CC on math scores was positive overall.

Did the CC have the same initial effects for economically advantaged and disadvantaged students?

No. The CC had a large positive initial effect for economically advantaged students, but the study finds no detectable initial effect for economically disadvantaged students.

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by Adam