Common Core ELA Standards: History, Policy, and Middle School
This paper examines the historical evolution of English language arts (ELA) instruction in the United States, from 17th-century origins through recurring reform cycles, culminating in the development of the Common Core State Standards. It reviews recent shifts in ELA pedagogy emphasizing complex texts, evidence-based writing, and content-rich nonfiction. The paper also analyzes New Jersey's verbatim adoption of the Common Core standards, discusses the role of funding, politics, and Cold War pressures in shaping ELA curriculum, explores cross-curricular connections promoted by the standards, and considers how emerging technologies may further reshape ELA instruction in the future.
- Introduction: Overview of ELA's role and paper scope
- Historical Evolution of English Language Arts Instruction: Grammar reform cycles from 1600s to Common Core
- Recent Changes and Developments in ELA: Key Common Core shifts in ELA practice
- New Jersey's Common Core Standards: New Jersey's verbatim adoption and implementation
- Funding, Politics, and Curriculum Development: Cold War pressures and education funding
- ELA and Cross-Curricular Learning: NEA perspective on cross-subject collaboration
- Possible Future Developments and Conclusion: Technology's role and research summary
✍️ How to write this paper — guide, tools & examples ▾
What makes this paper effective
- Provides a clearly structured survey that moves logically from historical origins through present standards to future developments, making the argument easy to follow.
- Grounds broad policy claims in specific historical episodes — the 1874 anti-grammar swing, the 1963 Braddock Report, and the Cold War funding surge — giving concrete anchors to an otherwise abstract topic.
- Integrates primary policy sources (Common Core official documents, NEA) alongside peer-reviewed scholarship, demonstrating appropriate source diversity for an education research paper.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper uses a literature review structure to synthesize multiple source types — historical scholarship, policy documents, and practitioner commentary — into a single coherent narrative. By framing each section around a distinct analytical lens (history, current standards, state implementation, politics, cross-curriculum, future), the author shows how to organize a broad topic without losing focus.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a thesis-driven introduction that previews all subsequent sections. It then proceeds through seven clearly labeled sections: historical evolution, recent ELA shifts, current state of the subject, New Jersey's adoption, funding and politics, cross-curricular relevance, and future developments. The conclusion mirrors the introduction by summarizing each strand, creating a tight bookend structure typical of education policy surveys.
Introduction
There is a growing consensus among middle school educators, including the National Education Association, that English language arts form the foundation for all other academic achievements. Consequently, it is not surprising that a great deal of scholarship has been devoted to identifying optimal approaches to teaching English language arts over the years. One of the most influential outcomes of this process has been the development of Common Core Standards for English language arts, which have been adopted in whole or in part by 46 states and the District of Columbia (Common Core state standards adoption, 2016).
This paper reviews the relevant literature to provide the historical evolution of the teaching of English language arts in the United States and a discussion of recent changes and developments in English language arts of importance to students. In addition, a description of the current state of the subject matter is followed by an analysis of New Jersey's Common Core standards. A discussion of the role played by funding, politics, and history in the creation and implementation of English language arts curriculum — and how ELA relates to other aspects of the curriculum — is followed by an assessment of possible future developments in the field. Finally, a summary of the research and important findings is presented in the conclusion.
Historical Evolution of English Language Arts Instruction
The historical evolution of the teaching of English language arts originated in the United Kingdom as early as the 17th century and in the United States as early as the pre-Revolutionary War era (Sewell, 2008). Indeed, Sewell emphasizes that "Even Benjamin Franklin called for grammar studies" (p. 88). In 1874, however, a so-called "anti-grammar swing" emerged that called into question the utility of teaching English language arts, resulting in the elimination of numerous grammar courses in the nation's secondary schools (Sewell, 2008).
Likewise, another anti-grammar swing occurred in 1963 following the publication of the Braddock Report, which maintained in part that "formal instruction did not improve writing and could even be detrimental to writers" (cited in Sewell, 2008, p. 88). The publication of the Braddock Report resulted in a transition from what Sewell terms "product" writing to "process" writing, as well as a "new grammar" that prevailed until the latter half of the 1970s (Sewell, 2008). During the latter half of the 1970s, yet another crisis in the teaching of English language arts resulted in the so-called "Grammar Wars" and initiatives such as the "Back to Basics" movement that characterized the 1980s and beyond (Sewell, 2008).
In 2008, former Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano, the 2006–2007 chair of the National Governors Association (Bidwell, 2014), called for Common Core standards, which have since been adopted in whole or in part by 46 states and the District of Columbia (Common Core development process, 2016).
Recent Changes and Developments in ELA
Some of the recent changes and developments in English language arts that are of importance to students include calls for the following key shifts:
Some of the major initiatives having an impact on Common Core standards subject matter include state-level educator task forces that focus on improving ELA curricular offerings and identifying opportunities to encourage more active participation by parents in their children's ELA education (Walker, 2013).
References
Bidwell, A. (2014). A guide to Common Core. U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved from http://www.usnews.com/news/special-reports/articles/2014/02/27/the-history-of-common-core-state-standards.
Bushaw, W. J., & McNee, J. A. (2009). Americans speak out — are educators and policy makers listening? Phi Delta Kappan, 91(1), 9–11.
Common Core development process. (2016). Common Core. Retrieved from
Common Core state standards adoption. (2016). Academic Benchmarks. Retrieved from
Key shifts in English language arts. (2016). Common Core. Retrieved from
Ryan, S., & Frazee, D. (2012). Common core standards for middle school English language arts. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Sewell, W. C. (2008, March). Entrenched pedagogy: A history of stasis in the English language arts curriculum in United States secondary schools. Changing English, 15(1), 87–100.
Walker, T. (2013, October 16). 10 things you should know about the Common Core. neaToday. Retrieved from
Create your account
Always verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.