Common Core results

[JimG]

“For years we’ve been warned by various education policy experts that Common Core would not produce the results its acolytes promised, yet Common Core converts have persisted, outlasting many weary parents who have finally thrown up their hands in exhaustion.”

Let’s Drop Common Core And Let All Families Truly Choose Their Schools

 

[MiserereMei]

I would honestly prefer we adopt wholesale the Finnish model, rather than either Common Core or school vouchers, especially if we want to maintain global economic relevance in the long-term.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlands-schools-successful-49859555/

https://www.theatlantic.com/nationa...gnoring-about-finlands-school-success/250564/

 

[Gertabelle]

This is all just chatter and a waste of time and money.

The first report came out in 1981 and was politically motivated by the man who would lose his job if he couldn’t produce a reason to keep his newly-created position of Secretary of Education.

“A Nation at Risk” told of failing schools and students who were unprepared to enter college or the work force… sounds familiar, eh?

Well, as someone who was in school at that time, I’m here to tell you that my generation seems to have done all right, in spite of all the dire predictions.

What these constant latest-and-greatest reforms have really done is use our schools as their labs and our students as their “rats” as every petty politician and pundit has demanded “reform” so they can put something on their resume.

Many of these reform measures have been created by people who have either never worked as a teacher in a public school K-12 classroom, or they’ve been out of the classroom and working as administrators and/or consultants for decades longer than they ever spent teaching actual children in actual classrooms.

Common core came in like a tsunami… and we’ve heard nothing of it for years now.

Bring on the next reform we absolutely must implement – with costly trainings and untested methods! :crazy_face:

 

[dallas_r]

Oh no…Common core is trash. Send help.

Sincerely,

Every Californian student

 

[RandomAlias]

America in decline – Gotta blame it on something.

Students? Parents? Teachers? Smartphones? The media?

Oh wait! Here’s a good scapegoat: Common Core.

Get rid of that and we’ll be fine.

Not.

 

[RCIAGraduate]

Gerbatelle, I understand you’re a public school teacher (I have a history of lurking in the forums), do you think the US education system would be better off if we set forth a grand compromise of sorts.

From the Republicans (or conservative aisle), we adopt localism (akin to that of Canada) and let the states be responsible for what happens to their education systems, while from the Democrats (okr the progressive to liberal viewpoint), we continue to provide nationalized support or federal transfers to help ensure equity while respecting a measure of autonomy (with reasonable limits like audits to prevent corruption and misuse of taxpayer dollars while ensuring dollars go towards educational programming, materials or into the classroom) and perhaps beef up from research into the education field as well like an NHS but for education?

 

[Gertabelle]

Every idea for reform sounds good on paper (or the screen). But there are no simple answers because the system we’re talking about is simply and ridiculously huge!

Putting everything at the local level always sounds good, until you get some corrupt people in that local system who mess everything up.

Putting the national government in charge sounds good for equality of expectations and outcomes, until you recognize the disparity of student “readiness for learning” from one school to another, let alone one state to another. And don’t forget the disparity of resources that exist – even if all funding were suddenly and miraculously equalized, the charitable (name removed by moderator)ut from wealthy families or multi-billion dollar philanthropic organizations creates incredible imbalance.

I think we need to stop looking for any kind of sweeping reforms. I think we need to stop hailing as “innovative” those programs that are just completely untested and unproven (and usually ridiculously time-consuming and expensive).

I think we need to stop treating school employees as a liability rather than an asset. Here in Colorado we are experiencing a shortage of quality teachers because the attitude towards teachers and the pay for new teachers just does not draw and keep the best and brightest.

I think we need to start holding parents accountable for being part of their children’s education, rather than saying if students are failing it’s all on the teachers – are doctors and dentists held accountable for the failure of their patients to maintain their physical and dental health?

What I’m trying to say is that politicians need to back off using our kids as their political pawns. And everyone needs to put a moratorium on innovation and reform.

Let’s all take a deep breath and let teachers teach for awhile.

Personally, it’s too big a beast for my brain. I just wish the politicians and power hungry would keep their hands off of our schools.