Rigorous educational standards like the Common Core can help students stay in school while engaging them, according to education officials.

According to a report by Camille A. Farrington of the University of Chicago, many schools fail to provide ample opportunities to increase students’ deeper learning skills, instead relying on lower-level learning techniques that limit potential. This leads to students who become less engaged, according to the report.

The Equity and Excellence Commission echoes these findings, stating that rigorous curriculum is the key to college and career readiness, which is what the state Common Core Learning Standards are supposed to foster.

Tim Mains, Jamestown Public Schools District superintendent, said if implemented and taught correctly, Common Core should decrease the dropout rate.

“If we do it right, it should improve the dropout rate because the new standards are really raising the bar,” Mains said. “The curriculum and classwork is more challenging, so it should be more engaging. Several studies have suggested that when curriculum is more challenging, students are more engaged.”

However, he added, some students who were struggling before the Common Core Learning Standards might see the additional challenges and react adversely.

“But, that was happening before (Common Core). The challenge might be too much for them, and they need additional support,” Mains said, adding that many school districts, including Jamestown, are using the Response to Intervention program which is a way to monitor and help students with academic challenges. “It’s an effort to close the gap, and when we are successful at that, we take that problem out of the equation.”

He added that as more and more rigor is introduced, there may be an initial disappointment. However, it will pay off in the long run.

“There may be a short-term discouragement, but when you ask kids to do more, it is surprising how quickly they step up,” Mains said.

Kaine Kelly, Sherman Central School District superintendent, said he believes that student engagement is important to their success, but he isn’t certain about the facts between Common Core Learning Standards and the dropout rate.

“We just haven’t had a long enough period where the Common Core has been implemented,” Kelly said. “We don’t have conclusive data on that, and it’s tough to say after a couple of years. Many of the students who would either be dropping out or graduating may not have taken any Common Core classes, or may have only taken a few.”

He added that Sherman is such a small district, even one student dropping out can be significant.

However, Sherman attempts to engage its students and holds high expectations for them, Kelly said.

“We are constantly pushing the students to achieve more than they currently are. If we raise the expectations for the kids, then they would achieve more, in theory,” he said. “We talk about that all the time. Right now, we’re holding a new teacher orientation, and I told them that the best way to avoid classroom management issues is planning.”

In planning interesting and engaging lessons, students will be more apt to pay attention and actively learn, Kelly said.

“Students who are interested and engaged are not acting out,” he said. “But, kids that are not engaged in their learning are not likely to be paying attention, and they are more likely to not apply themselves.”