What teacher, parent or concerned community member would say they oppose equitable, challenging and engaging education for all children? It might be difficult if not impossible to find someone eager to admit such opposition, but ask the same individuals whether they oppose the Common Core State Standards and at least some hands likely would shoot skyward.

This contradiction is puzzling. By definition, the Common Core Standards are a set of high-quality learning goals outlining what all children in any school in the country should grasp by the end of specified grade levels. The Connecticut Board of Education adopted the standards in July 2010. While highly politicized, exaggerated, or outright false negative claims about the standards continue to be shouted and argued, educators throughout southeastern Connecticut are doing the right thing for their students by focusing efforts on writing local curriculum to meet the standards and working to ensure all students meet the learning goals.

Such an approach is necessary because these educators understand children today are likely to enter careers that today's adults cannot yet imagine. They know children must get beyond memorization and rote learning to think more expansively, deeply and creatively. They know large numbers of children move frequently due to parents' military assignments or careers and want these students to be able to settle into new classrooms more easily and progress faster.

Groton Assistant Superintendent Susan Austin, who as a military child while growing up attended 10 schools in seven cities in five states, testified at the state Capitol last winter against a proposed Common Core moratorium.

"If we do not adhere to the work that has been done preparing our students for the 21st century, we will have lost precious time, dismissed the valued work of our teachers and administrators, and will miss the opportunity to compete in a global economy," she said.

While the Common Core holds much promise for students, legitimate concerns about implementation remain. State officials must address them. For example, educators need the tools to do a better job of communicating to parents the reasons for using the standards and why achieving the goals is important for students. Individual districts have succeeded in this regard by hosting fun and informative family math and English language arts nights that serve to both educate and communicate about the standards.

However, a comprehensive, statewide communication strategy would assist more parents and children.

A task force made up primarily of educators from throughout the state pointed out other concerns in a report submitted to the governor in June. Among these was a need for more and better professional development for teachers, along with opportunities for teachers to collaborate on best classroom practices. While wealthier, better-funded districts may provide these opportunities, smaller and poorer districts continue to struggle. This is yet another case in point that the state needs to to pay for its mandates.

Finally, teachers fear the state's new teacher evaluation system will judge their classroom performance by how well they teach to standards about which they have not received adequate training. The state must be open to delaying the evaluation connection until assured that common core curriculum is fully developed in all school districts and all teachers have been fully trained.

The administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy made education reform one of its top priorities four years ago and it must continue to receive the administration's attention. At times, it seems the governor has moved on, giving all his focus to his new favorite initiative, repairing and rebuilding the state's transportation infrastructure. The governor has not yet named a new education commissioner to replace Stefan Pryor, who resigned effective Jan. 7 to become secretary of commerce in Rhode Island.

Without continued attention from the Malloy administration, the Common Core could well be implemented unevenly and exacerbate the state's shameful racial and socio-economic achievement gap.