Common Core's epic fail: Special Education

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

There's been a lot of comment about how this isn't a standard, and that isn't a standard, but I don't think any of those commenters have yet provided examples that they do consider to be educational standards.

One of the criteria of the standards fro Common Core is that they be measureable. This one is not. Many are not.

I don't understand why you say that it's not a measurable standard, given that teachers apparently measure reading level like this all the time.

Can you please provide an example of a standard that is a good educational standard, in your opinion?

[Anonymous]

I have trouble believing that this thread is still going.

[Anonymous]

Why does a first grade teacher need a standard for teaching reading? Long before standards, that is what first grade teachers did. Having a written standard is not going to help a kid who is struggling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why does a first grade teacher need a standard for teaching reading? Long before standards, that is what first grade teachers did. Having a written standard is not going to help a kid who is struggling.

A first-grade teacher does not need a standard for teaching reading. In fact, no teachers need standards for teaching anything. That's not what standards are there for.

The standard says: this is what a student should be able to do at the end of a particular grade. For example, by the end of first grade, a student should be able to recognize the distinguishing features of a sentence (e.g., first word, capitalization, ending punctuation) (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.1.1.a). If a particular student can actually do this by the end of first grade, then good. If a particular student can't, then the student needs additional help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does a first grade teacher need a standard for teaching reading? Long before standards, that is what first grade teachers did. Having a written standard is not going to help a kid who is struggling.

A first-grade teacher does not need a standard for teaching reading. In fact, no teachers need standards for teaching anything. That's not what standards are there for.

The standard says: this is what a student should be able to do at the end of a particular grade. For example, by the end of first grade, a student should be able to recognize the distinguishing features of a sentence (e.g., first word, capitalization, ending punctuation) (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.1.1.a). If a particular student can actually do this by the end of first grade, then good. If a particular student can't, then the student needs additional help.

^^^I hit submit too soon.

How do you know if a kid is struggling, without an idea of what the kid should be able to do? That's the role of the standard.

[Anonymous]

If a particular student can't, then the student needs additional help.

And, we didn't need standards to know that. Schools have always done that.

[Anonymous]

Soooooo, what did first grade teachers do before standards?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Soooooo, what did first grade teachers do before standards?

Either they set their own standards, or they had no standards.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

If a particular student can't, then the student needs additional help.

And, we didn't need standards to know that. Schools have always done that.

Actually, we do need standards to know that, by definition. If there are no standards, then there is no such thing as a struggling student; whatever the student does is just fine.

[Anonymous]

Do you think it is reasonable to expect that every child who enters K will be prepared to go to college when he graduates from high school?

[Anonymous]

Do you think it is reasonable to expect that every child who enters K will be prepared to go to college when he graduates from high school?

Let me rephrase that:



Do you think it is reasonable to require that every child who enters K will be prepared to go to college when he graduates from high school?

[Anonymous]

Are schools going to start holding kids back if they don't meet the standards? What are they going to do about it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

If a particular student can't, then the student needs additional help.

And, we didn't need standards to know that. Schools have always done that.

No they haven't. Again, why all the kids who can't make change, who can't point out the Pacific Ocean on a map, who can't use proper grammar, who can only read at a basic level?

Without coherent and consistent standards, without accountability, we've failed to educate children by the millions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you think it is reasonable to require that every child who enters K will be prepared to go to college when he graduates from high school?

The Common Core standards do not require that. Individual states or school districts might decide to require students to meet the Common Core standards in order to get a high school diploma. I think that would be a mistake -- but if they did so, that would be a problem with the individual state or school district decisions, not with the Common Core standards.

[Anonymous]

Without coherent and consistent standards, without accountability, we've failed to educate children by the millions.

No. That's not the reason for failure. Go down into the projects and teach Kindergarten.