Tennessee Dems and Tea Party come together to take on Common Core

Lisa Fingeroot, Tennessean -  As the one-year countdown to Common Core state education standards begins today with the first day of school for many systems, Tennessee educators are fending off pleas to stop the clock for a timeout.

A group of Democratic legislators is forming an unlikely coalition with Tea Party Republicans to slow down or derail the launch of the Common Core, a multistate initiative that's expected to put top-notch test scores even further out of the reach of Tennessee students by setting higher goals.

But the appointed officials who make the state's education decisions are standing firm in their commitment to Common Core and the accompanying tests that some other states are dropping....

Democrats and Tea Party Republicans share similar concerns over the number of tests given to students and the intense focus being placed on results of high-stakes testing, said state Rep. Joe Pitts, a Democrat on the House Education Committee.

Kevin Kookogey, former chairman of the Williamson County Republican Party, would prefer to scrap Common Core entirely but is still in favor of a delay for now.