Hopefuls Display Differences On Education

Carol Burris is a principle and co-author to the book “Opening the Common Core”. In her article “I was naïve about the Common Core”, she addresses many personal experiences and negative outcomes from the modern day state standards for school districts. The Common Core is a set of state standards that schools teach to students so they have the skills, habits and knowledge to be successful for college and post high school careers. While in the beginning of the article she claims she was completely for this method of teaching, she later describes how gruesome it truly was to the students. The overwhelming stress to the children through extensive evaluations and tests became

Adopted by forty-two out states in 2010, the Common Core State Standard Initiative strives to provide an educational structure which details what English language arts and mathematics should be taught from kindergarten through twelfth grade. The initiative is the federal government’s attempt to ensure all students who graduate from high school are adequately prepared to enter a two or four year college or the workforce. Despite their intentions, the Common Core has caused much controversy in the education community. The thought behind Common Core is very valid and has the potential to help students, however changes must be made to unrealistic standards and wordy statements. Common Core must first be rewritten so that the language is clear and can be easily understood by the general public. Next ask experts on childhood development and elementary school teachers to review the standards and rewrite standards they see as unneeded or irrelevant as well as unrealistic.

In the news lately, there has been a controversy regarding the Common Core State Standards in Louisiana. This controversy has been going on for the last several months and there have been different ideas said by different groups of people. The parties that have been involved in the controversy include parents, teachers, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, Education Superintendent John White, the Board of Education and Secondary Education (BESE), and the Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC). The controversy over Common Core has to do with the lawsuits that have been filed, certain tests that should or should not be taken, and the legality and suspension of state contracts regarding the state’s education.

Politics and education have been intertwined since the establishment of public education in the United States. In other words, it is a well-known fact that public education is an extension of our political system. This has never been more apparent to the public than over the last three decades, beginning in 1983 with “A Nation at Risk” which is considered a significant event in modern American educational history. For the last few years, it has been the controversial topic of the Common Core State Standards Initiative in the headlines. One can hardly turn on the news or read a newspaper or web site without hearing something about Common Core State Standards (CCCS). People either seem to be adamantly for or against the standards. Educational reform and educational standards are not new and date back much further than many people realize. Furthermore, if the public understood what the standards actually encompass, there may be more support for Common Core State Standards. However, the public is being inundated with a multitude of reasons why states should not adopt Common Core by making it a political issue in order to gain votes. Regardless of what standards are adopted, common standards in education should be implemented in the United States to prepare students for college and career in order to compete and succeed in a global economy.

The educational system in the United States was originally developed using concepts from around the world, created using ingenuitive ideas from countries such as China, Japan, and Korea. However, as the United States quickly moved into position as the leading country for state-directed educational standards, America looked less and less to the systems of other nations and more into how we could improve what was locally and currently being applied in education. Consequently, an improved type of education instruction was officially launched in 2010. These new state standards, practically titled Common Core, were declared to focus on developing a child’s skills in reasoning, problem solving, communication, and competition (Conrad, et al. 52). While the standards are professed to be an extremely practical and beneficial method of teaching today, there are issues which have recently surfaced and raised some concerns. The Common Core State Standards are emerging as the subjects of a provocative controversy in society today as they prompt discussion on global economic efficiency, nationwide academic standards, and the ultimate well-being of school-age children.

Common Core State Standards is being heard throughout the education world. Many cringe when the words are spoken and many fight to support what the words stand for. Common Core was introduced in 2009 by state leaders. Common Core State Standards were developed to prepare children for the business world or the reality after grade school. “The Common Core is a set of high-quality academic standards in mathematics and English language arts/literacy, also known as ELA” (About the Standards, n.d.). The goals for the standards outline what students should know before leaving his or her current grade level. “The standards were created to ensure that all students graduate from high school with the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in college, career, and life, regardless of where they live” (About the Standards, n.d.). This is an ambitious goal, but with much support can be accomplished. According to Common Core State Standards Initiative (n.d.) The Common Core has been adopted by forty-two states already and is accompanied by District of Columbia and Department of Defense Education Activity. Common Core was developed to improve the academics in society’s schools. Academics in the past years have not been successful and the United States has fallen behind international education. “One root cause has been an uneven patchwork of academic standards that vary from state to state and do not agree on what students should know and be able to do at each

Education in the United States is in an abysmal state. It continues to spiral downward as students and educators fail to meet standards. The standards are then altered on a patchwork basis throughout the states. The goal is no longer to have a high standard educational system. The goal now is to maintain the status quo, allowing students and educators to strive for the minimum. There is no common approach to achieve success. Incipit Tragoedia, in comes the Common Core, agreed upon by educators, politicians, and

Common Core is built as an infective for education to all schools, but what it is, is a policy that all students learn the same. Common Core has been adopted in forty-three states around the nation. Common Core is designed to get students ready for college and career ready from grades Kindergarten through twelfth grade. “The basic definition of what Common Core is, a set of high-quality academic standards in mathematics and English language arts/literacy.” (Board)“The college- and career-readiness standards were developed first and then incoporated into the K-12 standards in the final cersion of the Common Core we have today.” (Practices) The construction of Common Core was by seeing which state standards were already the best, using experienced teachers, leading-thinkers, content experts, and also public feedback about their child’s education. Common Core is currently being endorsed by the White House. “Common Core is currently costing the United States eighty billion dollars.” (Board) Common Core was created by state educational chiefs and governors from forty-eight states. Common Core states that it will get students ready for their futures, but has only hurt them by not truly completing the goals set. Common Core is developmentally inappropriate for students because the cost of Common Core, it is pushed by the government for competition between states, and the strong implantation of standardized testing.

Ideally, the education system in the United States aims to serve as the great equalizer in the constant struggle to counter decades and centuries of historical oppression against those of non-European descent. The ideology of education as a great equalizer purports a pedagogy as a starting point for those oppressed and separated by such forces as race and class to have access to a quality education, and hence an equal chance at all the US has to offer. It attempts to bring children from disparate realms in a place that serves them all equitably. This ideal constantly challenges the broader values of equality, liberty and democracy considered to be at the core of American ideology. In interpreting this

However, polls also show that since 1996, people have become less willing to pay higher taxes in an effort to support urban schools, despite having acknowledged that lack of financial support is the biggest issue facing urban schools (Bushaw 10). Many feel that the implementation of Common Core Standards will drastically alter the quality of education being received by urban youth. Common Core is a program that established a nationwide curriculum and standard for educating the nation’s students grades Kindergarten through 12. Theoretically, this program will work and help advance education on a national scale. However, like the people of the United States, it’s schools are very eclectic, and must cater to a diverse group of students. The practices of a teacher in a successful Virginia school will likely not be as effective for a teacher in Detroit considering the vast differences in those school district’s financial support, regulation on class size, disciplinary measures, and parental involvement. Ultimately, Common Core standards are going to help some places, and may hurt others, which will only widen the education and achievement gap in the nation. Unique environmental aspects of education must be considered before the enforcement of such standards.

Many Americans, including teachers, are very displeased with the new standards children are having to live up to. If parents knew what the Common Core is doing to the classroom, there would be a revolt.; a quote directly from a New York high school instructor. Instead of teaching the fundamental basics of education, many teachers are too heavily stressed on the fact they have to meet a deadline and rush through important materials needed for adolescents future success.

The federal government’s control over education is too invasive. Students should not be expected to perform as compared to a country-wide standard, as each student’s learning abilities are different. Common Core testing is a poor, national standard that does not properly measure a student’s intelligence. The Tea Party believes that the Obama administration is trying to change the education system through “the back door” the inventors claiming that the common core raises the “education quality” when it in fact does not.Nationalized standards represent the heavy presence of the federal government and must be put to rest. The federal funding of schools is a poor solution to solve educational problems. One cannot simply use money as a kind of band-aid, expecting higher funding to result in better education for America’s youth. The government spends an average of ten thousand dollars per student each year, totaling $550 billion. This money is being thrown away and can be put to better use elsewhere. Federal involvement in no way results in a better education system and must be limited.

For starters, Common Core is defined as an academic outline that specializes in Math and the English Language that every student should know before moving on to higher grades. Common Core has various downsides. In order for states to recieve funding from the government they must adhere to the system guidlines. A brief note on Education and the government: education is a state right and not a federal right. Education has no right to be regulated by the government; in fact, it underminds the Tenth Amendment. The Tenth Amendment states that any power not delegated by the Constitution is delegated to the states or to the people.

Anyone would be hard-pressed to find a politician in recent years who has been elected to a national office without promising to improve education and focus their efforts on the betterment of their constituents’ children. Many of these politicians have succeeded at passing legislation to do so, but the latest of these, the Common Core standards initiative, is facing a very important query right now: does it work in America? Although Common Core is very well intentioned and in selective ways could be considered a success, there are many failures to consider as well. When dealing with such education, a vital issue, these failures must be dealt with. In order to ensure not only an equal education but also one of higher quality which the citizenry

Many states and parents are in turmoil over the Common Core standards. There are many misunderstandings about the Common Core that makes it hard for school districts to implement without resistance from the local population. The Common Core came about because a group of Governors were discussing the differences in student education in different states. The Governors noticed that students in different states received different educations. To ensure that all students no matter where the live or go to school would receive a quality education. In 2009 a group of governors called the National Governors Association for the Best Practices (NGA) enlisted the help of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) together they worked on creating a system to ensure that all students received the same quality of education. They created a listed of standards that all students should be able to achieve and that all states should be able to implement using whatever curriculum that the states saw fit.