Common Core: Good or Bad?

[LadyAbigail]

I haven't paid a lot of attention to Common Core, but I've recently been doing more studying and finding out what it's really about. This article I just found (haven't read it all yet) is geared toward homeschoolers, but it looks like it has some good info about CC in general. What do you think?

HSLDA

 

[Foxrac]

I don't have much opinion about common core, but I favor standardize the science and math - to ensure any students don't miss the lessons.

 

[LadyAbigail]

In theory, it sounds REALLY good. But I actually have some pretty big problems with CommonCore.

For one, the federal government is not supposed to be involved in education at all. It is ILLEGAL but most of us don't know our own laws so we let it happen. Education is supposed to be something that the parents control at a local level, not something that the Federal government that does not know our children has any control over.

The problem I see with standardized testing is, who sets the standard? And do they really know what they're doing? Have you seen some of the test examples they're going to use?

We say that we want to make sure that no child gets left behind, that they all learn and grow and that's great. But the kid with autism that no one will work with, the kid that can't read because everyone reads to him instead of teaching him how, the kid that is on Ritalin or other drugs and can't think straight, etc. these kids have to be able to pass. But we don't work on the problems and really teach those kids and help them grow, we dumb the tests down so that they can pass and no one learns anything.

The biggest problem I have with CommonCore however, is its effect on homeschoolers. At the heart of homeschooling is the belief that it is the parents' responsibility to educate their child, NOT the government's. People often assume that the "government knows best" and parents need to be watched, but the opposite is true. These parents homeschool because they were not satisfied with the education being offered and wanted something better for their children. They are consistently turning out graduates who are better educated, better leaders and better able to take on the world than anyone else. Now the government (which has already proven itself to be inadequate at educating children) wants to come into every home, MY home, and tell parents how they can and cannot teach their children...MY parents, MY siblings. For many of these parents, this is a religious issue, God commands parents to teach their children and CommonCore violates their religious freedom by giving that control to someone else.

I guess what really worries me is, will people that disagree with our choices still stand up and fight for our freedom? Or will we get mowed over like all the other minorities?

 

[LadyAbigail]

"One of the FAQs:
12. Who opposes the Common Core and why?Education professionals, policy analysts, and government officials center their critiques of the Common Core on four points.
First, the standards are academically deficient. Three of five members of the Common Core Validation Committee who refused to validate the standards have published reports condemning their academic merit. One of the reports concludes that the Common Core English Language Arts standards do not make students “college- and career-ready,” arguing that the lack of literary material required by the standards does “not ensure…sufficient literary and cultural knowledge for authentic college-level work.”23 It also examines the Common Core mathematics standards, concluding that the Common Core leaves students one or two years behind the National Mathematics Advisory Panel's recommendations, the requirements of some states, and the standards of leading countries by students’ 8th-grade year.24
The second argument against the Common Core is that the standards will not repair the broken education system. Brookings Institute policy analyst Grover Whitehurst observes that high academic standards and high student achievement are not connected.25 Statistics show that states with high academic standards score about the same on standardized assessments as states with low standards.26
Third, critics of the Common Core condemn the way the standards are being implemented. Randi Weingarten, president of the second-largest teachers’ union in America, and Diane Ravitch, an education historian who has pushed for national standards for years, criticize the government’s use of RTTT funding to coerce states into adopting the Common Core.27Critics also point out that states will have a difficult time shouldering the cost of implementing the Common Core. While estimates for implementing the program range from $12 to $16 billion, the federal government has given states only $4.35 billion.28
Finally, members of Congress, U.S. senators, and the Republican National Committee oppose the Common Core because it has handed the education authority of the states to the federal government. Lawmakers have raised concerns about the Department of Education’s unilateral revision of FERPA, its push for expanded state longitudinal data systems, and its close involvement in Common Core implementation."

 

[Foxrac]

In theory, it sounds REALLY good. But I actually have some pretty big problems with CommonCore.

For one, the federal government is not supposed to be involved in education at all. It is ILLEGAL but most of us don't know our own laws so we let it happen. Education is supposed to be something that the parents control at a local level, not something that the Federal government that does not know our children has any control over.

The problem I see with standardized testing is, who sets the standard? And do they really know what they're doing? Have you seen some of the test examples they're going to use?

We say that we want to make sure that no child gets left behind, that they all learn and grow and that's great. But the kid with autism that no one will work with, the kid that can't read because everyone reads to him instead of teaching him how, the kid that is on Ritalin or other drugs and can't think straight, etc. these kids have to be able to pass. But we don't work on the problems and really teach those kids and help them grow, we dumb the tests down so that they can pass and no one learns anything.

The biggest problem I have with CommonCore however, is its effect on homeschoolers. At the heart of homeschooling is the belief that it is the parents' responsibility to educate their child, NOT the government's. People often assume that the "government knows best" and parents need to be watched, but the opposite is true. These parents homeschool because they were not satisfied with the education being offered and wanted something better for their children. They are consistently turning out graduates who are better educated, better leaders and better able to take on the world than anyone else. Now the government (which has already proven itself to be inadequate at educating children) wants to come into every home, MY home, and tell parents how they can and cannot teach their children...MY parents, MY siblings. For many of these parents, this is a religious issue, God commands parents to teach their children and CommonCore violates their religious freedom by giving that control to someone else.

I guess what really worries me is, will people that disagree with our choices still stand up and fight for our freedom? Or will we get mowed over like all the other minorities?

The schools aren't required to take federal funding if they couldn't follow or doesn't agree with federal rule to use the funding, however some states, especially my state require school districts to receive the federal funding and adhere the federal rule, or they won't get much help from state. The federal rule is optional and only enforced if you want to receive a federal funding, but with state laws, it may make more complicated.

I think common core is involved about standardize the education but educators are free to teach more, or exceed the standard, like you need to cover all algebra and science. There are some students didn't learn very well because not all material was covered and I found some remedial algebra lessons at college that I never learned at my high school.

Depending on state, most standard exams are set by state that require all students in public school to take it, also in many states, public high school students are required to pass the exam to graduate with diploma. Those restriction doesn't apply to private school or homeschooling, unless you want use school voucher. The states have different laws to regulate the education. I know some homeschoolers took GED and passed it. If state-run standard exam isn't required, homeschoolers and private school students have to take ACT or SAT if they want to attend the college, unless college doesn't require or meet the class top to receive an exemption from SAT or ACT. SAT and ACT include lessons that you must to know, pretty like standard lesson like how to solve the inequality.

If religious is part of your concern, don't attend your child to public school. Homeschooling or private religious school of your choice. The public school is designed for secularism education. The religious discussion are off limit so I'm unable to give more detail. You have option to attend at religious college that they unlikely to use common core or other lessons that infringe with religion.

The public school education is regulated by states and federal rule is optional if they don't use federal funding. The local, county or district may have more regulation. Check with state and local laws because they are different. Some states may have regulation for homeschooling and private school.

 

[LadyAbigail]

Hey check this out....interesting article on CommonCore: Common Core Exams Put on Hold

 

[whatdidyousay!]

I would say it would depend on few things . CC would have not worked with my parents helping me. My dad helped me with my homework once and it was all wrong. I wish I had a common cold the next day so I could had stayed home.

 

[Foxrac]

I would say it would depend on few things . CC would have not worked with my parents helping me. My dad helped me with my homework once and it was all wrong. I wish I had a common cold the next day so I could had stayed home.

Common Core wasn't exist in 1950's.