Being a student in New York City is no easy feat, and being a high school student is no less hard. The moment you enter the Middle School phase you’re introduced to an entirely foreign obstacle, Common Core exams. It doesn’t take long to figure out that these tests aren’t your typical run-of-the-mill state test. In the case of some students the Common Core’s reinforced emphasis on the major four subjects is a welcoming notion, but in the case of others whose strengths rest in subjects that aren’t supported by Common Core, the experience can prove to be miserable.
And as your school’s academic agenda is refitted to include Common Core standards, suddenly you find yourself sitting in a test room instead of a classroom for an entire school
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However, less easy to digest is the fact that much of the school year is dedicated either to adopting Common Core standards or to reviewing Common Core material. In my experience Common Core standards reduce the role of teachers to mere puppets, spewing random lessons directly from a book that they’ve never used or seen before in their lives. And of course, while some students learn to adjust to the new material, others fail miserably, in that they struggle and struggle but are forced in a position where struggling often times risks being left behind. A confused student suddenly becomes a lost cause, as the issue of passing as many students as possible clouds the judgement of many teachers. Last year I happened to be that confused student, and I was forced to watch on the sidelines as my fellow peers engaged in what could only be called a crude interpretation of Darwin’s “Survival of the Fittest.” And like me, many New York students were reminded time and time again of the city’s No Child Left Behind doctrine, and yet I continued to struggle throughout the school year, sinking deeper and deeper into the abyss, until I found myself staring at my Common Core
Firstly,the city of New-york alone stands odd among the other states of nation. The nation’s academic standards get disturbed once the state of New-york gives the choice for students to opt-out of standardized tests on reading and math. It
In the article, “Quarrel over Common Core: A Pennsylvania Primer” by Randy Kraft (2014), Common Core and the controversy surrounding it are discussed heavily. Kraft’s thesis is to inform the audience about Common Core and explain, impartially, the arguments for and against it. In 2010, Pennsylvania took on the Common Core Standards. These standards were put in place to ensure that students of Pennsylvania were on the same academic level by graduation, and enable them to be better equipped to compete in a global marketplace (p. 1).
Explanation: This important because the backers of CCSS believe if that the general public could understand exactly what the standards are, there might be more support for them. Only seventeen percent of Americans who supported Common Core and the remainder was either confused or thought it was an umbrella for many topics other than education (Simon) This all connects back to my argument that the debate has spun out of control fueled by both sides, with the public stuck in the middle trying to grasp some understanding of CCSS. Analysis to compare of what is driving the resistance Politics, money, power
Sawchuk discusses the massive task of getting all the public school K-12 teachers ready for the standards. Professional development and the roles of the states and school districts are reviewed. This article is clearly demonstrates the amount of work it will involve to make the Common Core Standards a reality across the United States. Wilhoit, G. (2012). Make-or-break state action.
With over one million signatures and comments from parents against the program, there has been little progress with the disputes they have made. Some claim that education should be left entirely out of the hands of the government, with little to no interference in how classrooms are run or taught. The belief that the education of a child is best left in the hands of those closest are the best to make the decisions, rather than federal acts. The Common Core is a substandard arrangement of benchmarks which negatively affect instructor assessments, school responsibility measures, instructional procedures, educational modules, subsidizing, intercessions for low-performing schools, and school tests
Our current period in education is full of great change and opportunity. Students, teachers, and principals are being challenged to think, learn, and apply in different ways. The Common Core State Standards and technology are the main reasons this time period is so important. These two things are creating, "great opportunities within themselves" (Fullan, p.12, 2014) and at the same time are very challenging because they have "unclear implications for implementation" (Fullan, p.12, 2014). Both Common Core State Standards and technology are very complex and create an exciting time in learning across the educational system however, make it challenging for educators in the U.S. to be effective and implement in a way that maximizes learning.
Common Core Mathematic Standards have been under evaluation because of a debate between college professors, some who feel the standards are not substantial enough to prepare students for the college degree. It is a teacher’s responsibility to prepare their students for the next level. Even many supporters believe that the Common Core State Standards have many flaws and should be evaluated. With that being stated, the board that constructed the standards made mention that the cause for these flaws is because they focused so much on the K-8 standards that they ran out of time. Because of this short time, they ended up having to rush to work sure the K-8 plus or High School Standards were completed, meaning they had less time to truly think them through.
It was discovered that in education there were certain areas that were universal and common among learning. The two main subjects of concern were English language arts and mathematics. Common core is the new curriculum implemented now in school systems to develop learning. Common Core Standards are a clear set of shared goals and expectations for the knowledge and skills students need in English language arts and mathematics at each grade level so they can be prepared to succeed in college, career, and life. Although, Common Core seems to be here to stay this article addresses concerns in reference to content, instruction, and assessment.
“When the Common Core first caught public attention in early 2010, it seemed like an unstoppable locomotive… As I write in the summer of 2014, the prospect is a bit different. That locomotive is nowhere to be seen and may be lying on its side in a dry gulch”(Wood 29). Common Core started off strong however, after uncovering all of the problems that lie within it, it has become more of a problem than a
Nevertheless, schools are facing hard times and taking the loss right where it hurts, the pocketbook. Many states signed up for the new curriculum within only two months, which was not nearly long enough to make sure that the new learning standard was fit for them. By signing up, these states agreed to buy tests and upgrade their technology to administer the tests. All of this added up to thirty dollars per student, more than what half the states can afford. “Common Core Causes Collateral Damage” reveals, “Just last month, Maryland announced it would need $100 million to get schools up to speed to administer the tests”(McShane, 2).
Like Barry Bonds on steroids, the overemphasis on standardized learning and assessments has distorted the true meaning of learning. Even if limited data was made available to “demonstrate” the efficacy of high stakes testing on improving math and reading scores, the negative implications behind testing are never taken into consideration. The very real practical result of years of NCLB-type reforms is that the intellectual life has been squeezed out of classrooms. The phrase “high standards” (or rigorous) by definition refers to standards that everyone won’t be able to meet.
In other words, Common Core is basically a waste of time for kids in grade school. More and more students are worried about getting the right answer the wrong way. A seven year old girl was "stressed about taking a mastery test. " At 7 years old a child for one shouldn't be stressed.
With NCLB’s strong emphasis on standardized testing to measure student learning, teacher quality, and the achievement gaps, it pressured the schools to narrow its curriculum, teach to the test (Jackson Sr., 2011), and more importantly, “limited the productivity of critical thinkers, and innovators of America.” (Proconor) Teachers are forced to teach to the test to meet the requirements, and focus their teaching on the materials that are on the test. At the same time, the NCLB gives the states and school districts the flexibility to develop their own assessments. David Hursh, an Associate Professor at the University of Rochester, claims that this freedom seriously impact the accuracy of the assessments since states can design tests with different standards. (Holmes, 2009)
The article I chose to read was about the struggle with the Common Core math standards. The Common Core standards are geared more towards the “why” just as much as the “how.” The author talks about how this is a complete change in pace from what teachers grew up and learned. The new change being so different from what teachers have learned has made it very difficult for them to teach. There have been changes made within some education schools regarding this issue.
Recently, the Common Core State Standards were developed and kids were going to be tested more than ever. However, all of this education reform has been a failure because our testing scores have not improved, the testing makes children suffer, and it doesn’t improve how teachers teach. Education reforms has had little effect on our testing scores. The average score for a 17 year old student doing a reading test in the beginning of school is 285 and over 40