now, david coleman, who played a role in shaping those common core standards and is president of theis the person actually working on both ends of this. >> yes, so david coleman, just so people are clear about the common core thing that's happening, right, some sort of substantive body of knowledge that american schoolchildren across the country should know is what the common core is, right? and, well, that's the idea. right? i mean, substantive body of knowledge. and the s.a.t. test which has always been an aptitude test, your ability as opposed to knowledge, is now being designed to mirror some kind of body of knowledge. what do you think about that? >> about the common core? >> the mirror in between the two. >> you know, i think it's a back door way of sort of having, you know, an external control mechanism over our schools. i mean, if you aline the s.a.t. to common core, you're going to force high schools to really adhere to the common core -- >> it's like the back door curricular power. if the s.a.t. says you have to know this thing, doesn't matter what your local school distric

college board president david coleman sat down with nbc news education correspondent rehema ellis ander this overhaul is long overdue. >> it's time for the college board to say in a clear voice that the culture and practice of test preparation in this country has led to a perception at least of inequity and injustice. the exams were designed to show hard work and merit, but now so many people say what they really show is who has access to special secrets or special preparation. >> randy weingarten is the president of the american federation of teachers. thank you so much for being here. how much of a game changer do you think this is for students? >> well, you know, we're going to have to see it in practice first. what we've learned in terms of education, there's a big, big difference in terms of what's pronounced and how it operates in the field. on the face of it, these seem like really good changes. like, for example, to actually have vocabulary words on the s.a.t. that you use as opposed to something that you'll never even see again, even in "the new york times" crossword puzzle,

david coleman announced the changes in austin, texas. >> we've also been listening to students and theirn been mysterious and full of anxiety. >> reporter: the new exam will return to a 1600-point scale. the essay will become optional and fancy vocabulary words like sagacious and mem bra news will be replaced by common words such as synthesis and ecologist. >> it times to admit that the s.a.t. and a.c.t. have become far too disconnected from the work of our high school students. >> reporter: he lumped in the a.c.t. in his explanation, but the s.a.t. used to be the top college entrance exam, but last year at least 140,000 more students took the a.c.t. 33 colleges do not require s.a.t. scores and that number is growing. the college board will also offer online tutoring who want to prepare but can't afford tutors or prep work courses that high income families can. that is designed to counter the idea that the s.a.t.s are a triumph of privilege over merit. jim axelrod, cbs news, new york. >>> another rare corvette is above ground. this morning. recovery workers pulled the car from the sinkho

and so i think a lot of the changes that david coleman and the college board are introducing are intended to kind of right that balance, and maybe the s.a.t. more reflective of what students are actually experiencing in 16 and 17-year-olds and in their college classrooms to come. >> rafael, you have an academically demanding course of study at al burke, academy, is it as unrelated to what kids are learning in the classroom at a place like your school? >> well, as your introduction indicated the s.a.t. started from a different place, it was meant to be an aptitude test, and the a.c.t. was the test that was based more on the content of what students knew. that the college board announced yesterday seemed to be a lining it more with the act. and they are becoming more and more alike. as they have been doing for years but this is a much larger step to making the s.a.t. much like the act. >> jim rollins, you're the end user arguably, what use is the act to a college admissions department? >> the act, or set each serve a role with us as one of the several pieces that let's us see something abou

. >> reporter: david coleman, president of the college board, explains that's about to change. >> there is no mystery as to what success in college and career training requires. it is time for a test that is open so kids can productively practice and ready themselves. >> reporter: the redesigned s.a.t. is going high tech. by 2016, it will be available in both paper and digital forms. it is returning it a score scale of 1600. the essay portion will be optional. and the current penalty for wrong answers is being removed. vocabulary words like prevaricator and sagacious will go away. instead, more practical words like synthesis and empirical will be included. there will be more focus on analyzing text and asking students to refer to real world examples and documents. >> that was rehema ellis reporting for us. >>> now an update on a story that impacted so many of you. this morning's target's chief information officer beth jacobs out of a job. part of the retailer's overhaul of its information security. target is trying to restore public trust during a two-week span late last year, you might

college board president david coleman announced the changes in austin, texas. >> we've also been listening to students and their families for whom these tests are often mysterious and foster unproductive anxiety. >> reporter: the new exam will return to a 1600-point scale. the essay will become optional. and fancy vocabulary words, like sagacious and membranous, will be replaced by words commonly used in college such as synthesis and empirical. calculators will only be allowed on part of the math test. synthesis and empirical. calculators will only be allowed on part of the math test. >> it is time to admit that the s.a.t. and a.c.t. have become far too disconnected from the work of our high schools. >> reporter: coleman lumped in the other major college entrance exam, the a.c.t. in his explanation, but competition between the two exams may help explain the changes. the s.a.t. used to be the top college entrance exam, but last year, at least 140,000 more students took the a.c.t. 33 colleges do not require s.a.t. scores, and that number is growing. at pitzer college, a liberal arts school n

college board president david coleman says the tet should offer, quote, worthy challenges not obstacles. 1600 point scale deaf the 2400 point scale introduced in 2005. we asked you what you thought of these changes and wyman says quality writing is missing, education skills should remain. wolf says the test is only as important as the demand for it in higher education and employment. you can read more at aljazeera.com aljazeera.com. >> lots more questions whether they are dumbing down thest. thanks hermella. >>> is the rest of mother nature trying to kill you? also the polar vortex, the weather has frozen >> al jazeera america presents extrodanary documentaries. colin comes from a long line of ferrymen. >> you're a riverman from start to finish... >> now he leaves home to see what life is like on the waters of bangladesh. >> it's absolutely filthy... >> he learns how difficult working ther can be. >> how do you say..."get out the way"? >> shoro >> can this brittish man find common ground with his local host? >> "must really take it out of mr. loteef"... >> toughest place to be a ferryma

college board president david coleman says the tet should offer, quote, worthy challenges not obstacles. 1600 point scale deaf the 2400 point scale introduced in 2005. we asked you what you thought of these changes and wyman says quality writing is missing, education skills should remain. wolf says the test is only as important as the demand for it in higher education and employment. you can read more at aljazeera.com aljazeera.com. >> lots more questions whether they are dumbing down thest. thanks hermella. >>> is the rest of mother nature trying to kill you? also the polar vortex, the weather has frozen one beautiful >> nature is wondrous but it can also be brutal and horrifying. our next guest has written a book, called mother nature is trying to kill you, dan riskin is that fascinating and fascinated author. the host of monsters inside me on animal lan it. great to have you. >> great to be here. thanks. >> you start with a really disgusting thing, i don't want to get into it. how about the book, how is mother nature trying to kill me? >> everybody has this idea that it's a loving ki

college board president david coleman said he was concerned the s.a.t., and the costly testing mania surrounding it, was putting an even bigger burden on disadvantaged students. >> we must confront the inequalities that now surround assessment such as costly test preparation. there is time for the college board to say in a clear voice, the culture and practice of test preparation that now surrounds admissions exams drives the perception of inequality and injustice in our country. >> reporter: for >> woodruff: fk at the changes and the reason behind it, we turn to special correspondent for education, john merrow. john, welcome to the program. first of all, how big a deal is this that they're making these changes? >> i think it's a big deal. the changes you mentioned, students will applaud several of them -- getting rid of the obscure vocabulary words, using "propitious" in favor of self-deprecating. they will be in favor of that. they will be in favor of getting rid of the penalty for guessing and getting rid of the mandatory essay. the older folks will like going back to 1600 instead

i asked david coleman that question because in a 21st century with a bunch of digital natives why notath test? he said they want to test more of the depth and the breadth so they will have an opportunity to put that to the test coming up in 2016. >> robert, this is your business. >> people ready to take this test, what do you think of the changes they're making? >> a couple of things. we have long been critical of the college boards specifically around the s.a.t. we heard it from david cullman this week. it is not predictive of college success, it is not a good test. but when we start to dig down into why, we think think about the market share issues between the act and the s.a.t. there are lots of things to unravel than just the question of the s.a.t. being a predictor of college success. >> you say the s.a.t. and the act, so when i was growing up they say if you're from iowa you take the act, you're from the northeast you take the s.a.t. apparently the act has been surging in its popularity. it surpassed that more people took the act than the s.a.t. last year. what are they doing th

so the idea, you know, the way david coleman, president of the college board, the relatively new president of the college board, explained it to me is that this is a nudge. that there should be additional changes coming down the pike, and i don't think you know -- this is a huge issue, right? it encompasses all the education. our students being prepared equally at the high school level. i think we pretty much are all in agreement to know that isn't the case. >> you make -- >> whatever should happen -- go ahead. >> you make reference to research by folks, academics associated with bates college and what they point out, when you do a comparison at those schools where it's not necessary that you're application include an s.a.t. score, you find a very negligible difference between students admitted with no s.a.t. score and those admitted by filing an s.a.t. score, which, of course, begs the question maybe the whole thing ought to be ditched? >> correct. right. it's a very significant study. you know, there have been test optional schools, so-called test optional schools dating back decades. ma

opportunity through the adoption of the common core by 48 states and now thanks again to my friend david coleman, a completely reimagined s.a.t. test to integrate not only key knowledge but to give young people an opportunity to act on that knowledge directly into everyday classes. my dream is that this work will become part of their everyday math and english classes. while i have no objections to financial education classes which are electives and need to continue to do this work, i fear that exposure to them is far too random and dependent on what zip code a young child happens to be in. furthermore, we have learned the hard way if it's not tested, chances are it won't be consistently taught. and results of studies such as -- 's release by finra, ck up the notion that this hit and miss nature of this work is not enough. through the work of the last council, we have really proven that teachers and school leaders alike responded well to the the exemplars that they can align with the core and learn concepts embeded in their everyday curriculum. this council to move quickly to take that work to th

opportunity through the adoption of a common core by 48 states, and now thanks again to my friend david coleman, a completely reimagined s.a.t. test to integrate not only knowledge, but actually give young people the opportunity to act on that knowledge directly into everyday classes for every student in public schools. my dream is that this work will become part of their everyday math and english classes. while i have no objections to financial education classes that are currently offered as electives and believe that some are truly outstanding and need to continue to do this work, i fear that exposure to them is far too random and dependent on what zip code and what school a young child happens to be in. furthermore, we have learned the hard way that if it's not tested, chances are it won't be consistently taught. and results of studies such as today's released by finra certainly back up the notion that this hit and miss nature of this work is not enough. through the work of the last council, we have really proven that teachers and school leaders alike responded well to the exemplars that the

les, i want to start with the college board president, david coleman, earlier this week, when he announcede changes should help kids breathe easier. listen. >> there's no mystery as to what success in college and career training requires. it's time for a test that is open so kids can productively practice and ready themselves. >> should kids be breathing a sigh of relief now? >> well, i think the changes will have at least the potential to makes things a lot better and to allow access to more people. one of the things that the changes will do is it will make the test less susceptible to testing or to coaching -- although, i think there will still be coaches out there. >> what do you think? are these changes going to lead to some sort of dramatic effect? will there be a dramatic effect as a result of these changes for students? >> we're certainly hopeful of that. we work with low-income students primarily around the country. as everyone has talked about, the s.a.t. test can be potentially biased to students with more resources -- >> but won't that always be the case? >> so the college board

david coleman had this to say when announcing the changes. >> and if the con board is serious about goingnity, we must be in front of the inequalities that now surround the session's costly test preparation. >> but will these changes actually help close the education inequality gap in this country? i want to welcome dennis vonn rocquele and presidential historian, doris kearns goodwin who join us from washington, d.c., where they're attending a conference, teaching and learning 2014. welcome. >> hello. hello. >> hello. good to be here. >> thanks for being here. dennis, i want to touch on those students who, like myself, my s.a.t. scores prove it, are just not good test takers. will these changes in s.a.t. help them? will it make a difference? >> well, i haven't seen the actual new test so i can't comment on the specific questions. i think the idea that we provide free assistance to people is a really important one for bridging that inequality that exists in the system. i think as the movement is towards not having a single major determined eligibility for college it's important to have ot

the college board president, david coleman, has described the s.a.t.ch deep. i think now we're going to see the s.a.t. diving deeper into the work that students are doing in their high school classes. >> okay. we have some students who may be rejoicing about this, because the essay has become optional. some adults are not. kathleen parker is writing in the "washington post" calling it a shame. the essay, for instance, wasn't a call to mer seasonian excellence but a way to determine whether a student could compose a coherent sentence. the subject, verb, all that stuff. not to mention whether one can think. a person can't write a series of sentences to express a koejent thought, is that person qualified for an education? does she have a point? >> i disagree. the old essay introduced in 2005, asking questions like is failure necessary for success. and then asked students to provide examples, which were never fact-checked. you could write an essay and receive a perfect score claiming something like the war of 1812 happened in 1945. you could claim that the

david easley, thinks coleman's recent sentencing to five years in state prison for robbery and assaultributing factor to this latest incident. >> okay. does the court scare you sometimes? >> sometime. >> okay. is that why you got so upset was after court last week? >> yeah. >> and what was upsetting you? what were you worried about? >> because i ain't never been down here, and i didn't know what it's like and what it's going to be. >> so next time you go to court, you won't be so scared because you know? is that what you mean? >> yeah, because i already know what's going on, so i'll be straight. >> and i believe you will. when you're in new territory, it can be scary. >> yeah. >> but once you've been there before, you're not so scared. >> right. >> does that make sense? >> yeah. >> i can feel that way, too. >> yeah. >> all right. so you want to get your clothes back? >> yes, sir. >> do you want to get a jump suit and go back to level ii? >> yes, sir. >> all right, that's what we'll do. all right. do you need anything else? >> no, i don't need anything. >> thanks a lot. see you later. >

the man behind the overhaul is david coleman, also created the common core, the standards adopted by5 states, despite complaints it will call the nationalized control of the school curriculum. what do these changes mean for our children? here to explain is a former teacher, whitney neil. nice to see you this morning. >> good morning. >> can you walk us through exactly what the changes are for the s.a.t.? >> i can. we are looking at significant changes to the s.a.t. perhaps the most important is the writing portion, the portion where people sit down to express their ability to critically think on paper is now optional. some other changes they are making, they are taking the vocabulary from the s.a.t. words that people struggling with, and now tow common core words. a lot of people are concerned about this. >> what does this mean for the states opted out of the common core standards, the federally-mandated common core standards? do they have to add here to the standards even though they are technically not in the same rell system? >> unfortunately, yes. you are looking at states like t

david arquette, who was terrible, to be honest with you. i bounced back with donald driver. he won it. i picked zendaya coleman, who came in second place.ast season i picked amber riley from "glee" and last season i won once again. [ cheers and applause ] 12 seasons i've been doing this i've correctly picked two third place winners two, second place winners and a staggering seven winners. and that is why they call me nostra-dance-mus. [ cheers and applause ] i am ready to make my prediction for 2014. earlier today i wrote a celebrity dancer's name down on a piece of paper. i locked it inside a tiny briefcase. and then i secured that little briefcase inside guillermo's mouth. right, guillermo? [ laughter ] are you ready for this, guillermo? >> mm-hmm. [ laughter ] >> jimmy: drum roll, please. thank you. guillermo, reveal my selection for this season of "dancing with the stars." >> amy purty. [ applause ] >> jimmy: that's right. amy purty is the snowboarder who has an incredible story. she has no leg. how can you vote against a dancer with no leg? the answer is you can't and you better not. that's right. even though she is an underdog at