Uh oh. Is Pearson in trouble?

Arne Duncan and state around the country have all their Common Core eggs in Pearson's basket. Problem is, the basket's got a hole in it.

The Guardian reports that the British mega-publisher's 2013 earnings would be lower than expected due to higher restructuring costs and poor demand for its North America education business in its key selling quarter.

In education, where it is the world leader, it is seeking to grow in emerging markets and tap into the rise in spending by a burgeoning middle class.

Pearson, the 170-year-old education and media group which is in the middle of a transformation under new leadership, said US state budget pressures, fewer enrollments and higher investment needs has battered its profit margins. The company, which for years beat market expectations as it rolled out its education and testing business around the world, was hit by a string of managerial changes and slowing growth in 2013

The group said the poor performance, which wiped £900m off its stock market value, reaffirmed the need to push ahead with a restructuring to focus on digital services, emerging markets and an improvement in its US education division.

Also see: The coming Common Core meltdown by Stan Karp in the Washington Post