Thursday, September 5, 2013

The Common Core: A Poor Choice for States Coalition for Public Education/Coalición por la Educación Pública: The Common Core: A Poor Choice for States

Coalition for Public Education/Coalición por la Educación Pública: The Common Core: A Poor Choice for States:

The Common Core: A Poor Choice for States

The Problem(s) with the Common Core State Standards
 FROM: http://heartland.org

NOTE: This is a critique of the Common Core coming from the Right. One of the major things it lacks is how the Common Core Standards will have a deepening negative impact upon Black & Latino students by its re-enforcement of Eurocentric curriculum and pedagogical practices.  

Problem

Most states have traded their education standards for Common Core national standards. State leaders were told Common Core would not infringe on state and local control, would establish high academic quality, and would improve student performance. Unfortunately, none of this became true when the standards were actually written.

Common Core was written behind closed doors, largely by four education consultants employed by private organizations. Because of this, most state lawmakers and citizens did not hear about Common Core until after state boards and departments of education had quickly adopted it and corresponding national tests, with the Obama administration having presented adoption as the surest route to eligibility for federal Race to the Top money.

As they have learned how Common Core will affect curricula, teaching, and testing, state lawmakers and citizens have objected strenuously, leading more than a dozen states to consider withdrawing, while others have dropped their involvement with federally funded tests. The main concerns include Common Core’s questionable academic