Descriptive Summary
Administrative Information
Agency History
Scope and Content
Indexing Terms
Related Collections at the California State Archives
Related Collections at other Repositories
Descriptive Summary
Title: California Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards Records
Dates: 1996-1998
Collection number: R255
Creator:
California Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards
Collection Size:
9 cubic feet of textual records, 68 audiocassette tapes, and 36 videocassette tapes
Repository:
California State Archives
Abstract: The records of the Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards (Academic Standards Commission
or ASC) document the creation of recommended content and performance standards for California's public school system. This
record group contains 9 cubic feet of textual records, 68 audio tapes, and 36 video tapes. The records are organized into
seven record series and cover the period from 1996 to 1998. The record series include: Meeting Transcripts, 1996-1998; Meeting
Files, 1996-1998; Focus Group Files, 1997-1998; History-Social Science Committee Files, 1997-1998; Science Committee Files,
1997-1998; Public Testimony Files, 1997-1998; and Subject Files, 1996-1998.
Physical location: California State Archives
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
Administrative Information
Access
While the majority of the records are open for research, any access restrictions are noted in the record series descriptions.
Publication Rights
For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the California State Archives. Permission for reproduction or publication
is given on behalf of the California State Archives as the owner of the physical items. The researcher assumes all responsibility
for possible infringement which may arise from reproduction or publication of materials from the California State Archives
collections.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Academic Standards Commission Records, R255.[series number], [box and folder number], California
State Archives, Office of the Secretary of State, Sacramento, California.
Acquisition History
The California State Archives acquired the records of the California Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content
and Performance Standards according to state law.
Agency History
AB265 (Alpert) created the Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards (Chapter 975, Statutes
of 1995) and was later modified by SB430 (Greene, Chapter 69, Statutes of 1996) and Chapter 920 (Statutes of 1996). The Commission
was typically referred to as the Academic Standards Commission (ASC). The Commission was comprised of 21 members: 12 members
appointed by the Governor, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, 6 members appointed by the Superintendent, 1 member appointed
by the Senate Rules Committee, and 1 member appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.
The Commission's central responsibility was to develop academically rigorous content and performance standards to be used
in public schools for grades kindergarten through 12. The Commission was required to hold a minimum of six public hearings
throughout the state in order to solicit input in the development of the standards. The State Board of Education was also
required to hold public hearings and to provide the accumulated testimony to the Commission. The Commission was mandated
to develop content and performance standards in reading, writing, and mathematics prior to developing standards for science
and history-social science. The Commission was obligated to submit their recommendations for content and performance standards
to the State Board of Education by October 1, 1997 (it is presumed this deadline was extended since some of the final drafts
are actually dated July, 1998).
The criteria for creating these academic and performance standards included the following: must be measurable and objective;
must reflect the knowledge and skills necessary for California's work force to be competitive in the global, information-based
economy of the 21st century; must be comparable in rigor to academic content and performance standards used in the school
systems of America's global economic competitors; must provide the basis for assessments for K-12 in the groupings of K-3,
4-6, 7-8, and 9-12.
It was the intent of the legislature that the commissioners include parents, members of the business community, and teachers.
The Commission was led by Ellen F. Wright (chair), Robert Calfee (vice-chair), and the senior consultant was Susan Pimental.
The position of Executive Director was shared by Ellen Moratti (1996-June 1997) and Scot Hill (June 1997-1998). The Commission
had several committees including the Mathematics Committee, the History-Social Science Committee, the Reading and Writing
Committee, the Science Committee, and the Executive Advisory Committee.
Scope and Content
The records of the Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards (Academic Standards Commission
or ASC) document the creation of recommended content and performance standards for California's public school system. This
record group contains 9 cubic feet of textual records, 68 audio tapes, and 36 video tapes. The records are organized into
seven record series and cover the period from 1996 to 1998. The record series include:
The Transcripts and Meeting Files series comprise the bulk of the record group. These records offer detailed information
on the day-to-day work of the Commission, from budgets and review comments to consultant evaluations and public testimony.
The Focus Group Files, History-Social Science Committee Files, Science Committee Files, and Public Testimony Files all provide
insight as to the ways the Commission folded the opinions of experts, teachers, parents, business community members, community
advocates, and the general public into their final recommendations. These series primarily consist of school district surveys,
expert and non-expert reviews of draft recommendations, and testimonials.
The Subject Files primarily relate to various types of contracts and agreements considered and entered into by the Commission.
Consulting firms and paid experts were heavily utilized to create matrices, perform research, data collection and analysis,
and provide detailed opinions. These files also contain valuable information on the creation and background of the Commission
as well as the Mathematics Content Standards recommendations.
For researchers simply wishing to view the final recommendations made to the State Board of Education: the History-Social
Science report can be found in the History-Social Science Committee Files; the Science report can be found in the Science
Committee Files; the Mathematics report can be found in the Subject Files. The English-Language Arts final report is not
represented.
No further accruals are expected.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Education --Standards
Education --California
California. Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards
Related Collections at the California State Archives
Department of Education
State Board of Education
Related Collections at other Repositories
Additional records may be found in the Hoover Institute at Stanford University, Stanford, California, 94305.