Education Week - November 14, 2012 - 6

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NOVEMBER 14, 2012

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Common-Core Deal Sparks Legal Feud For Fla., Tech. Firm
Lawsuit filed after state terminates contract
By Jason Tomassini & Nikhita Venugopal
If the implementation of the Common Core State Standards is an opportunity for government and the private sector to work together toward a mutual goal, a bitter dispute in Florida over a website planned to prepare teachers and students for the standards is proving the messy realities of what can happen when government agencies and private companies can’t get along. The Florida Department of Education terminated a $20 million contract with Infinity Software Development on Oct. 30, about a week after the company filed a lawsuit against interim Commissioner of Education Pam Stewart. The dueling public disclosures outlined a bitter dispute in which both sides claim the other acted too slowly and too sloppily on the project. While the project is in litigation, Florida educators are left without a preparation resource officials expected would be in use by now, in advance of the curriculum being in place by 2014. Assessments for the common standards are set to begin in the 2014-15 school year. “It’s the definition of building a car while it’s careening downhill at 60 miles per hour,” said Mark Pudlow, a spokesman for the Florida Education Association, an affiliate of the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers. lessons aligned with the common standards and Florida’s Next Generation Sunshine State Standards that were adopted in 2007. Tutorials in high school biology, English/ language arts, civics, and mathematics would prepare students for more rigorous state testing, and eventually the common assessments, which are being developed in the common-core subjects of English/language arts and math. Infinity earned the contract in a roundabout way. Florida had initially turned to the Microsoft Corp. to develop the website in early 2011. However, Infinity challenged the contract, claiming Microsoft’s intent to retain ownership of the software was not in the state’s best interest, according to the Associated Press. Infinity won the contract in July 2011 and signed it a few months later.

SELECTANDCONVENIENT A LOCATION DATE
Implementing the Common Core State Standards: ELA Focus
g December 3: Tampa g December 4: Orlando g December 6: Little Rock g January 23: Hilton Head g January 24: Charlotte g February 4: San Diego g February 6: Fresno g February 7: San Jose

Implementing the Common Core State Standards: Math Focus
g December 4: Tampa g December 5: Orlando g December 7: Little Rock g January 24: Hilton Head g January 25: Charlotte g February 5: San Diego g February 7: Fresno g February 8: San Jose

Poor Communication?
Right away, the relationship went bad, according to court documents and correspondence between the two parties. Infinity accused the education department of not altering the contract’s timetable to account for Microsoft’s dismissal, and of missing review deadlines. The department claimed the company missed its initial deadlines and had fallen six months behind schedule. Both sides accused the other of missing meetings and communicating poorly. The department said Infinity “thwarted” efforts to “foster an environment of cooperation and support,” accusations that Jon Taylor, Infinity’s president, called “inaccurate and offensive.” A particularly heated exchange arose over allegations that Infinity wasn’t properly submitting content produced for the website to a panel of experts, as required, and that factual errors resulted. For example, one civics lesson suggested a discussion on the meaning of “the pursuit of happiness” in the preamble to the U.S. Constitution, though the phrase is actually found in the Declaration of Independence, the department said. In response, Mr. Taylor said the department didn’t understand the point of the lesson, which was to draw comparisons between the ideals in both documents. Students were supposed to begin work on the site last month, and in an Oct. 3 letter, the department said it would be “extremely damaging” if lessons weren’t delivered this school year. On Oct. 22, Infinity sued

Lead the Change to Common Core State Standards: Get Essential Tools for School and District Leaders
g November 29–30: Denver

ASCD COMMON CORE INSTITUTES
are the ideal opportunities to explore resources and processes for implementing Common Core State Standards.

g December 6–7: Orlando g January 24–25: Charlotte g February 4–5: San Diego g February 7–8: San Francisco

Complex Relationships
As a majority of states scramble to meet the common academic standards that were unveiled in 2010, Florida’s dispute could serve as a cautionary tale for the unusually complex public-private relationships developing to make sure the new standards are used in classrooms. “It’s one thing to procure for buses and desks, but if you’re procuring for a more complicated product, you need more expertise and resources to manage contracts,” said Douglas Levin, the executive director of the State Educational Technology Directors Association, or setda, based in Glen Burnie, Md. “It needs to be a collaborative effort, and the state needs to take a leadership approach.” Last December, Florida’s education department signed the contract with Infinity, an established software company based in Tallahassee. Infinity would create a website for students and teachers featuring mini-assessments and

Implementing the Common Core State Standards: English Language Arts (ELA) Focus

Implementing the Common Core State Standards: Mathematics Focus

(A One-Day ASCD Professional Development Institute) Explore the instructional shifts and key concepts essential to a successful adoption: • Focusing instruction on close reading of multiple kinds of texts. • Writing scope and sequences. • Addressing reading and writing across the curriculum.

(A One-Day ASCD Professional Development Institute) Understand the new classroom and instructional norms entailed in a successful adoption: • Unpacking standards and clustering them to form manageable units. • Writing scope and sequences. • Shifting instruction to align with new assessments.

Lead the Change to Common Core State Standards: Get Essential Tools for School and District Leaders

(A Two-Day ASCD Professional Development Institute) Get the action steps you need to roll out Common Core implementation efforts at school, district, and regional levels: • Criteria and rubrics to guide implementation. • Strategies for data teams to drive improvement of instruction. • Walkthroughs to provide feedback and generate collaborative dialogue.

Learn more and register online at www.ascd.org/cc12 Call Toll-Free: 1-800-933-ASCD (2723) or 1-703-578-9600, then press 1.

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Education Week - November 14, 2012

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