The new Common Core State Standards educational initiative is causing controversy that's bleeding across political lines and affecting American families, and Florida is no different.
The heart of the angst lies with the purposes behind this new system. Is it better education or a dastardly plan for more government control?
When Common Core was introduced, most states, including Florida, jumped on board, with the thought it all sounded good: new reading, writing and math benchmarks to enhance education in order to give American students a global competitive edge. The motto of CCSS is Every Child College and Career Ready.
Developed by National Governors Associations Center for Best Practices, the idea of states coming together to find the best national educational practices sounded ideal, making powerful political figures, like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, champion the cause.
Florida is phasing in CCSS over four years, with complete implementation planned for the 2014-15 academic year.
Many educators, like elementary teacher Amy Noegel, believe CCSS will inevitably be better for the children. The common core standards will universalize the curriculum across the nation, allowing us to more effectively serve students who move from one area to another because there wont be any catching up, she tells Sunshine State News.
They will also ensure a much higher level of instruction and accountability, Noegel continued. I think it is a positive step but a huge professional responsibility. Teachers will need trainings to update their instructional practices, and administration will need to actively monitor to see that is correctly implemented across the board.
The other side of the story brings questions on the origin, intent and even right to privacy. As part of the 2009 stimulus bill, federal funding was given to states on condition they commit to CCSS. President Obamas Race to the Top also required states to use standardized tests funded by the feds.
In the series Rotten to the Core, Michelle Malkin details how CCSS is actually behind other countries, including in math, where children will be learning things like long division and algebra later. Classic literature in English is being replaced by information. Instead of raising expectations, Common Core is a Trojan horse for lowering them, she says.
Another controversial aspect to CCSS is the nationwide student-tracking system tied in with their technological project. The American Principles Project brought this to light last year as part of a broader plan to track everything from birth to entering the workplace and then selling information to private entities.
Michelle Rhee, head of StudentsFirst advocacy group, spoke recently in support of CCSS, saying as educators, we should be more concerned about China kicking our butts than feeling bad about the federal government.
Homeschoolers fear this is the beginning of the end of their independence. Ellen Keyes has homeschooled her four boys and her eldest, Jordan, is a National Merit Scholar. I am personally against CC because God has called parents to decide what and how to teach their children, not government entities, she tells SSN. The Common Core has its origins in communism communism does not equal freedom. The consequences of implementing a national curriculum and national testing will result in so much more than dumbing-down and equalizing students, including, for example, frightening invasion of privacy concerning children's academic and personal information.
I have been homeschooling for my children's whole lives, Keyes continues, And, honestly, all parents are teachers, whether their children are attending a traditional school or not, we teach them by what we spend our time and efforts doing.
Orange County School District Superintendent Barbara Jenkins, on the other hand, supports Common Core. In her State of the Schools address, she spoke about dropping FCAT and engaging CCSS. OCPS will be top producer of successful students in the nation, she said.
Lisa Folch writes Special to Sunshine State News.
