Common Core's epic fail: Special Education

[Anonymous]

Here's the thing... many people have been complaining about the poor quality of education in our country, including the poor showing on the PISA tests. People have commented on how home life and SES affect test scores and learning, which is very true. But, schools can't control home life. The only thing they can control is the curriculum and learning time. So, now they are trying to address it. Is CC standards, NCLB testing, decrease in recess/play time the way to do it? I'm not an educator, so I don't really know what other viable alternatives there are. But from a lay person's perspective, everything else being out of the school's control, I don't see what else they can do. If you are from a higher SES family with good schools, then you probably don't think extra learning time is as important because you probably have the means to help your kids with HW and such at home. But many people of lower income SES don't have that ability so more learning time at school is much more important. If you have one district with both types of schools (like most districts do), I don't think you can have a policy where school x has more instruction time than school y.

As for writing the "opinion" pieces, I think it's great that young kids are asked to convey what they think about something. Most of the time, what they write makes no sense and come out as gibberish (my DC was in K last year), but I think it's good practice for them to practice their "thinking" skills.

I know you mean well, but you are wrong. It is not more "learning time"---it is more "drill" time. Those are not the same thing.

[Anonymous]

As for writing the "opinion" pieces, I think it's great that young kids are asked to convey what they think about something. Most of the time, what they write makes no sense and come out as gibberish (my DC was in K last year), but I think it's good practice for them to practice their "thinking" skills.

Not a worthwhile activity for a K child. Time would be much better spent developing "thinking" or "opinion" skills verbally. Save the writing for later.

[Anonymous]

The problem is that if they are having K kids write opinion papers, the K kids are NOT learning things they should be learning. I'd much rather see them developing verbal language skills.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Here's the thing... many people have been complaining about the poor quality of education in our country, including the poor showing on the PISA tests. People have commented on how home life and SES affect test scores and learning, which is very true. But, schools can't control home life. The only thing they can control is the curriculum and learning time. So, now they are trying to address it. Is CC standards, NCLB testing, decrease in recess/play time the way to do it? I'm not an educator, so I don't really know what other viable alternatives there are. But from a lay person's perspective, everything else being out of the school's control, I don't see what else they can do. If you are from a higher SES family with good schools, then you probably don't think extra learning time is as important because you probably have the means to help your kids with HW and such at home. But many people of lower income SES don't have that ability so more learning time at school is much more important. If you have one district with both types of schools (like most districts do), I don't think you can have a policy where school x has more instruction time than school y.

As for writing the "opinion" pieces, I think it's great that young kids are asked to convey what they think about something. Most of the time, what they write makes no sense and come out as gibberish (my DC was in K last year), but I think it's good practice for them to practice their "thinking" skills.

I know you mean well, but you are wrong. It is not more "learning time"---it is more "drill" time. Those are not the same thing.

Sorry, but it is you who is once again wrong. There is absolutely nothing in CC that requires instruction to be "drill and kill." If some schools and teachers are choosing that approach then that is a failing that is entirely their own choice and implementation - they would be "drilling and killing" with our without CC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What are the "Common Core" test results? Perhaps you're referring to the test results from the tests mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act, which Congress passed in 2001?

These are the standards used for testing in many states. You know that. Yes, NCLB requires testing and CC capitalizes on that requirement.

How do the Common Core standards "capitalize" on the testing required by NCLB? States that did not adopt the Common Core standards (Virginia, for example) conduct NCLB testing, just like states that did.

I'm also wondering how test results from tests related to the Common Core standards have been used to "punish" kids.

When they come up with 1 or 2s, they are pulled out of their electives, so they can be drilled, drilled, drilled and drilled more so they can pass the tests. Their recesses in K are being limited so they can study, and drill and write their "opinion" pieces. Their class plays are canceled so they can do more work.

It goes on and on and on. And the Common Core standards drive it all.

If little Johnny still can't tell basic parts of speech or add and subtract like the rest of his classmates were already able to do 3 grades prior then you definitely have a pretty big problem on your hands, but instead you've just demonstrated that you just want to sweep it under the carpet rather than bothering to get the poor kid any remedial help...

[Anonymous]

Sorry, but it is you who is once again wrong. There is absolutely nothing in CC that requires instruction to be "drill and kill." If some schools and teachers are choosing that approach then that is a failing that is entirely their own choice and implementation - they would be "drilling and killing" with our without CC.

Wrong. When the reputation of the school--and perhaps the teacher's job hinges on getting a child to pass a standard that is possibly inappropriate for the child, guess what the teacher is going to do?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What are the "Common Core" test results? Perhaps you're referring to the test results from the tests mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act, which Congress passed in 2001?

These are the standards used for testing in many states. You know that. Yes, NCLB requires testing and CC capitalizes on that requirement.

How do the Common Core standards "capitalize" on the testing required by NCLB? States that did not adopt the Common Core standards (Virginia, for example) conduct NCLB testing, just like states that did.

I'm also wondering how test results from tests related to the Common Core standards have been used to "punish" kids.

When they come up with 1 or 2s, they are pulled out of their electives, so they can be drilled, drilled, drilled and drilled more so they can pass the tests. Their recesses in K are being limited so they can study, and drill and write their "opinion" pieces. Their class plays are canceled so they can do more work.

It goes on and on and on. And the Common Core standards drive it all.

Who is doing this, and where? The tests aligned to the Common Core standards (Smarter Balanced and PARCC) haven't even ever been given as tests, so there haven't been any test results to punish students for. This year is the first testing year for Smarter Balanced and PARCC.

[Anonymous]

If little Johnny still can't tell basic parts of speech or add and subtract like the rest of his classmates were already able to do 3 grades prior then you definitely have a pretty big problem on your hands, but instead you've just demonstrated that you just want to sweep it under the carpet rather than bothering to get the poor kid any remedial help...

You don't know much about public law in education, do you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Here's the thing... many people have been complaining about the poor quality of education in our country, including the poor showing on the PISA tests. People have commented on how home life and SES affect test scores and learning, which is very true. But, schools can't control home life. The only thing they can control is the curriculum and learning time. So, now they are trying to address it. Is CC standards, NCLB testing, decrease in recess/play time the way to do it? I'm not an educator, so I don't really know what other viable alternatives there are. But from a lay person's perspective, everything else being out of the school's control, I don't see what else they can do. If you are from a higher SES family with good schools, then you probably don't think extra learning time is as important because you probably have the means to help your kids with HW and such at home. But many people of lower income SES don't have that ability so more learning time at school is much more important. If you have one district with both types of schools (like most districts do), I don't think you can have a policy where school x has more instruction time than school y.

As for writing the "opinion" pieces, I think it's great that young kids are asked to convey what they think about something. Most of the time, what they write makes no sense and come out as gibberish (my DC was in K last year), but I think it's good practice for them to practice their "thinking" skills.

I know you mean well, but you are wrong. It is not more "learning time"---it is more "drill" time. Those are not the same thing.

Well, I think that might depend on the class. I haven't seen much drilling going on in my DC's classes. Or maybe I don't understand your definition of "drilling".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Sorry, but it is you who is once again wrong. There is absolutely nothing in CC that requires instruction to be "drill and kill." If some schools and teachers are choosing that approach then that is a failing that is entirely their own choice and implementation - they would be "drilling and killing" with our without CC.

Wrong. When the reputation of the school--and perhaps the teacher's job hinges on getting a child to pass a standard that is possibly inappropriate for the child, guess what the teacher is going to do?

I suggest that you read this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Tested-American-School-Struggles-Grade/dp/0805080821/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=&qid=

It was published in 2007 -- long before the Common Core standards.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem is that if they are having K kids write opinion papers, the K kids are NOT learning things they should be learning. I'd much rather see them developing verbal language skills.

Here is the Common Core standard for opinion pieces in kindergarten:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.K.1
Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose opinion pieces in which they tell a reader the topic or the name of the book they are writing about and state an opinion or preference about the topic or book (e.g., My favorite book is...).

That sounds exactly like verbal language skills to me.

[Anonymous]

Please go back to the title of this thread. Common Core is inappropriate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

As for writing the "opinion" pieces, I think it's great that young kids are asked to convey what they think about something. Most of the time, what they write makes no sense and come out as gibberish (my DC was in K last year), but I think it's good practice for them to practice their "thinking" skills.

Not a worthwhile activity for a K child. Time would be much better spent developing "thinking" or "opinion" skills verbally. Save the writing for later.

Disagree. Nothing wrong with having kids "write" in K. They can write down exactly the way they verbally say it. Like I said, the writing is gibberish, barely legible, letters turned around, etc... But it's writing practice, none the less, which is important, too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Here are the criteria -- I'm assuming they're the criteria you're referring to:

http://www.corestandards.org/assets/Criteria.pdf

Thanks for posting the link. Great example of how poorly Common Core was put together. They claim to want kids to write--but that paper is a mess.

Please explain how that paper is a mess.

And no, I don't consider "measureable" to be a substantive problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Please go back to the title of this thread. Common Core is inappropriate.

Asserting just plain "Common Core is inappropriate" 84 pages into the thread is a bit silly. We've been over that at least 15 times already.