Ga. school board adopts on K-12 standards

ATLANTA - Georgia has adopted a set of national education benchmarks.

Georgia joined 20 other states Thursday that have signed on to the Common Core State Standards, which detail what students should learn in each grade and should know when they graduate high school.

The standards were produced by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers. Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue was a leader on the committee that created the benchmarks.

All but two states Alaska and Texas signed on to the original concept of Common Core more than a year ago. Critics worry that the standards will essentially nationalize public schools rather than letting states decide what is best for their students.