The Cather Standards: Model PreK-12 State English Language Arts Standards
Saved in:
| Title: | The Cather Standards: Model PreK-12 State English Language Arts Standards |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | National Association of Scholars (NAS), Freedom in Education |
| Source: | National Association of Scholars. 2026. |
| Availability: | National Association of Scholars. 221 Witherspoon Street 2nd Floor, Princeton, NJ 08542-3215. Tel: 609-683-7878; e-mail: nasonweb@nas.org; Web site: http://www.nas.org/ |
| Peer Reviewed: | N |
| Page Count: | 141 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Document Type: | Reports - Descriptive |
| Education Level: | Elementary Secondary Education Early Childhood Education |
| Descriptors: | Language Arts, English Curriculum, Literature, Elementary Secondary Education, Early Childhood Education, Instructional Program Divisions, State Standards, Academic Standards, Teaching Models, Program Descriptions, Reading Achievement, Writing Achievement |
| Abstract: | America needs excellent and comprehensive K-12 English Language Arts (ELA) instruction. For generations, American classrooms have produced graduates who, on average, possess a steadily shrinking ability to read and write, and a steadily shrinking bank of basic knowledge. Even with the encouraging recent shift towards literacy instruction built upon the Science of Reading and Writing (SoR), reading and writing abilities continue to decline. ELA standards should ensure that all American schoolchildren learn every part of ELA instruction, from foundational literacy to cultural literacy to character formation. ELA standards therefore should provide expectations for "what to read" as much as they do for "how to read." Great literature has always provided the means for common, humane discussion and writing, and a return to the world of stories, balanced with informational text, will revive students' interest in and ability to read and write in our classrooms. These model ELA standards are named after Willa Cather, one of America's most enduring and beloved authors. The standards aim to reflect the strengths of Cather's works: clear, well-crafted prose, attention to American themes and values, and engagement with the wider world. "The Cather Standards" aim to provide a framework for ELA classroom instruction from foundational reading through advanced study in the humanities that equips high school graduates for college, career, and civic life. |
| Abstractor: | ERIC |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | ED681145 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | America needs excellent and comprehensive K-12 English Language Arts (ELA) instruction. For generations, American classrooms have produced graduates who, on average, possess a steadily shrinking ability to read and write, and a steadily shrinking bank of basic knowledge. Even with the encouraging recent shift towards literacy instruction built upon the Science of Reading and Writing (SoR), reading and writing abilities continue to decline. ELA standards should ensure that all American schoolchildren learn every part of ELA instruction, from foundational literacy to cultural literacy to character formation. ELA standards therefore should provide expectations for "what to read" as much as they do for "how to read." Great literature has always provided the means for common, humane discussion and writing, and a return to the world of stories, balanced with informational text, will revive students' interest in and ability to read and write in our classrooms. These model ELA standards are named after Willa Cather, one of America's most enduring and beloved authors. The standards aim to reflect the strengths of Cather's works: clear, well-crafted prose, attention to American themes and values, and engagement with the wider world. "The Cather Standards" aim to provide a framework for ELA classroom instruction from foundational reading through advanced study in the humanities that equips high school graduates for college, career, and civic life. |
|---|
