All states do not participate in Common Core.
Furthermore, where is the federal government's legitimate authority to even set a national standard, Common Core or otherwise?
Power is different from legitimate authority. The federal government can force states to knuckle under by threatening to withhold funding for a variety of operations.
Let me tell you a story.
Once upon a time, Congress recognized that the quality of education available to kids was wildly skewed because there were no set standards in place. They passed a law (with strong bipartisan support) mandating that education would be held to a national standard. They even set aside federal funds to do a national test. This was now law.
Well, some time later folks realized that:
A. Common core would test science, including "controversial" subjects like evolution and climate change. People complained.
B. Some state/local politicians realized this was going to make their schools look bad. It wasn't that we weren't teaching the kids, it was that "common core" was testing on things we didn't care about in Alabama. It was perceived as "unfair." People complained.
C. The great propaganda machine was set into motion to fight this. Who here heard the jokes about "common core math"? Well, turns out, there is
no such thing. Common core does not mandate how you teach math, it only tests on how well you've learned math. People complained.
D. The folks that have always opposed "teaching to the test" also came on board. People complained.
The uproar was real, but the law was already passed. So what does a politician do to satisfy his constituents?
Well, a few politicians hit upon a grand scheme. What if we refused to take the national test, but, instead, implemented our own state standardized testing. We've already been doing that for years, and we can go back and claim we aren't doing common core!
And so, some states decided not to use the "Common Core" national test. No more of that crazy "common core" stuff.
Here's the thing. The law was already passed. Even though states were designing their own tests, these tests HAVE to meet the common core standards.
OK's version is the OCCT, I believe.