Why are people so upset about Common Core?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I point to Common Core, because the school is blaming Common Core. As long as schools keep pointing to Common Core as the reasons for their decision, something is very wrong up the chain. I fully believe that Common Core was developed to give the school districts license to push an agenda. And I believe, after seeing samples of the tests and curricula approved for Common Core, that it goes much farther up the chain than local level. You cannot separate the developers of the standards from the curriculum. In doing so, you are proving to me time and again, that you have no idea what it means to work in anything else BUT government. When the implementation fails, the standards fail. That's how it works. Spending time in a private corporation will show you how breaks in the chain during implementation usually points back to poorly defined standards.

Really?

1. School district messes up.
2. School district does not want to take responsibility for messing up.
3. School district blames the Common Core standards instead.
4. Obviously, something is wrong with the Common Core.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

As far as enforcing time limits, most public forums have rules about doing so. Were the police in this case overzealous in enforcing this issue (that is unrelated to CCSS)? Possibly, but the question of how one enforces rules of order in public forums is totally separate from Common Core.

Don't be ridiculous, PP. Nothing is totally separate from the Common Core standards. EVERYTHING links back to the Common Core standards. I stubbed my toe the other day, right after I had posted something about the Common Core standards. Coincidence? Not. Follow the money.

[Anonymous]

Will I be able to move every kid in my Title 1 program across that goal line next year? Probably not. B I'm also not in a tested grade, but if I were, I wouldn't be particularly worried about the performance issue. My kids' scores will be compared to other kids with similar scores to set projections. If the test is hard kids will struggle across the board, and while I'm not sure that all my kids will pass, I'm confident that I can move them as far or farther than the teachers whose kids they'll be compared to.

I also taught Title I. If putting food on my table depended on how the kids did on a standardized test, I would be very worried. I would be looking to get in a grade that didn't test.

[Anonymous]

The focus should be on the child--not the standards. The standards are the steps for the child, but you must start at the step the child is on. If you start at step 5--and the minimum standard for that grade is step 30, you have a problem.

[Anonymous]

cont. I meant to say the minimum "beginning" standard is step 30.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The focus should be on the child--not the standards. The standards are the steps for the child, but you must start at the step the child is on. If you start at step 5--and the minimum standard for that grade is step 30, you have a problem.

The teacher evaluation systems do not work like this:

Is the child at step 30 at the end of the year? If so, you keep your job. If not, you lose your job.

They work more like this:

Overall, children who start the year at step 5 end the year at step 11. Did the child end the year at step 11 or higher? If so, you do well on the test-score component of the teacher evaluation system. If not, you don't.

[Anonymous]

Overall, children who start the year at step 5 end the year at step 11. Did the child end the year at step 11 or higher? If so, you do well on the test-score component of the teacher evaluation system. If not, you don't.

That is simplistic. It just does not work that way.

[Anonymous]

Who administers the tests? The teachers?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Overall, children who start the year at step 5 end the year at step 11. Did the child end the year at step 11 or higher? If so, you do well on the test-score component of the teacher evaluation system. If not, you don't.

That is simplistic. It just does not work that way.

What is simplistic about it? How does it not work that way? How does it work?

[Anonymous]

What is simplistic about it? How does it not work that way? How does it work?

Some kids will be starting BELOW the bottom standard for the grade level. How do you show growth if he is on third grade level, but taking a sixth grade test?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who administers the tests? The teachers?

The new PARCC tests are administered by computers with teachers serving as proctors. Schools usually take some steps to avoid situations where a single teacher is testing his/her own students. They may have multiple proctors, or switch classes so that teachers don't test their own kids.

The results are sent away for scoring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

What is simplistic about it? How does it not work that way? How does it work?

Some kids will be starting BELOW the bottom standard for the grade level. How do you show growth if he is on third grade level, but taking a sixth grade test?

School districts are ALREADY doing this. Children are ALREADY taking standardized tests for their grade. Teachers are ALREADY being assessed based in part on changes in children's scores on those tests.

[Anonymous]

There will be cheating. Believe me. I knew a teacher who cheated when only ego was involved.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What is simplistic about it? How does it not work that way? How does it work?

Some kids will be starting BELOW the bottom standard for the grade level. How do you show growth if he is on third grade level, but taking a sixth grade test?

School districts are ALREADY doing this. Children are ALREADY taking standardized tests for their grade. Teachers are ALREADY being assessed based in part on changes in children's scores on those tests.

Uh, not everywhere. In my state there are levels of tests, and they are given at grade level to show growth.

But CC and Race to the Top stops this. My child will now be forced to take hours and hours of tests on material he's never learned. The special needs community is all in an uproar over this. Our facebook groups grow by leaps and bounds each day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There will be cheating. Believe me. I knew a teacher who cheated when only ego was involved.

Of course there will be cheating. There is always cheating, anywhere, on anything.