Why are people so upset about Common Core?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Teacher here. Most of my colleagues don't like the way it was implemented so quickly. They are writing the curriculum very quickly and not giving it to us until the last minute. We don't have time to prepare and we end up making a lot of the materials on our own. So we are working overtime times 100 and we are burnt out. I think it is a bit too ambitious myself but I teach in a Title 1 school.

I agree, but it's like that with most curriculum- you're told what to teach, but not given the materials/resources to teach it. IMO, this is one of the biggest problems in education. But at least with Common Core, I feel like since it is so widespread, in a few years you will start seeing a plethora of textbooks and materials developed that support it.

I started a thread awhile back asking if teachers would prefer to have curriculum materials or make their own up and overwhelmingly was told that teachers preferred to make their own materials and not be given anything by the county they work for. Which is it? I agree that making your own materials every day is a bit too much when you have to teach them too. No one needs a teacher trying to be so innovative every day that he or she spends more time planning than actually teaching.

here is the thread:
http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/450673.page#6501389

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, they do the math quizzes...but they aren't teaching the math facts in school. And they use crazy strategies to explain the concept, and the strategies are confusing many kids. Just because your kid knows his times tables doesn't mean that his classmates do. It's a real issue the schools are grappling with.

We learned our times tables in second grade. Drilled into us at school (not at kumon or with a tutor).

I'm a teacher( not in mcps) and the above is correct. Math facts are not taught in school. Yes, most classes will have weekly quizzes, but no time in the classroom is spent learning them.

That is the decision of your school or your school district. My child in MCPS spent a lot of time on math facts in class. In fact, parents on DCUM complain bitterly about this, because their advanced children already know the math facts and so how come they have to waste their time on this preschool math when they are ready for calculus.

[Anonymous]

That is the decision of your school or your school district. My child in MCPS spent a lot of time on math facts in class. In fact, parents on DCUM complain bitterly about this, because their advanced children already know the math facts and so how come they have to waste their time on this preschool math when they are ready for calculus.

It should be the decision of the TEACHER. Every class is different and every child is different. But everyone exept the teacher gets a say in this. That's the problem. The districts that are doing well are the ones that hire the best and then let them teach based on who is in front of them.

And this is why teacher made lessons are the best. It's like getting a custom made suit instead of something off the rack. It fits a whole lot better and it is the right color and material.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

That is the decision of your school or your school district. My child in MCPS spent a lot of time on math facts in class. In fact, parents on DCUM complain bitterly about this, because their advanced children already know the math facts and so how come they have to waste their time on this preschool math when they are ready for calculus.

It should be the decision of the TEACHER. Every class is different and every child is different. But everyone exept the teacher gets a say in this. That's the problem. The districts that are doing well are the ones that hire the best and then let them teach based on who is in front of them.

And this is why teacher made lessons are the best. It's like getting a custom made suit instead of something off the rack. It fits a whole lot better and it is the right color and material.

It should be the decision of the teacher, whether or not the curriculum covers math facts in class? So if you get a teacher who thinks that math facts should get taught in class, you'll learn your math facts, but if you get a teacher who thinks that math facts should not get taught in class, you'd better hope that you learn them somewhere else?

Yikes.

[Anonymous]

Common Core = assurance that students are receiving, at least, a basic education. Not left to the whim of the teacher

Teachers should use common core as the basic beginning, then expand/supplement/enrich - - unless a teacher is lazy.

[Anonymous]

It should be the decision of the TEACHER. Every class is different and every child is different. But everyone exept the teacher gets a say in this. That's the problem. The districts that are doing well are the ones that hire the best and then let them teach based on who is in front of them.

And this is why teacher made lessons are the best. It's like getting a custom made suit instead of something off the rack. It fits a whole lot better and it is the right color and material.




It should be the decision of the teacher, whether or not the curriculum covers math facts in class? So if you get a teacher who thinks that math facts should get taught in class, you'll learn your math facts, but if you get a teacher who thinks that math facts should not get taught in class, you'd better hope that you learn them somewhere else?

Not either PP. But the latter PP does not get the point. Every class IS different. The point is that some kids already know the facts--a teacher may have a class that already knows the facts. She may have a class with tons of parental support who will practice at home. OR, she may have a class where little support is given outside of class. The teacher should have the discretion to evaluate her own students and choose the best way to be sure the kids know the facts.

[Anonymous]

Common Core = assurance that students are receiving, at least, a basic education. Not left to the whim of the teacher

Teachers should use common core as the basic beginning, then expand/supplement/enrich - - unless a teacher is lazy.

And, some kids may be lagging way behind when the teacher gets them. CC may require lots of testing in areas for which some kids are not ready. In that case, the teacher should be teaching the kids at a lower level. Sad, but true. A teacher worried about her job will be concentrating on having the kids pass the test--which does not necessarily equal mastering the material. That's the trouble-some people on this thread do not understand that.

[Anonymous]

It should be the decision of the teacher, whether or not the curriculum covers math facts in class? So if you get a teacher who thinks that math facts should get taught in class, you'll learn your math facts, but if you get a teacher who thinks that math facts should not get taught in class, you'd better hope that you learn them somewhere else?

Yikes.

You don't get it. It's not that the teacher decides whether or not the kid learns math facts. It's that the teacher can see who has already learned them and who hasn't and adjust so that those who already know them aren't bored to tears and those who don't know them get the opportunity to learn them. This is a teacher decision.

If you don't have teachers who are free to do this, the problem is not the teacher, it's the one size structure they are being forced to teach in. The TEACHER has to be free to make decisions about this.

[Anonymous]

^ And when I said that teacher created lessons are best, I meant lessons, not curriculum. The curriculum is already there and the lessons are based on it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
^ And when I said that teacher created lessons are best, I meant lessons, not curriculum. The curriculum is already there and the lessons are based on it.

But the Common Core standards explicitly call for children to know their math facts. The curriculum is based on those standards. What, exactly, is the difference between "the curriculum" and "the lessons that are based on the curriculum"?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

^ And when I said that teacher created lessons are best, I meant lessons, not curriculum. The curriculum is already there and the lessons are based on it.


But the Common Core standards explicitly call for children to know their math facts. The curriculum is based on those standards. What, exactly, is the difference between "the curriculum" and "the lessons that are based on the curriculum"?

Okay. Sorry. Then what I meant was that the teacher should create the curriculum. A poster made it sound like the teacher was not using the standards if he/she made decisions. I was trying to say that the teacher needs to make the decisions regarding the curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Teacher here. Most of my colleagues don't like the way it was implemented so quickly. They are writing the curriculum very quickly and not giving it to us until the last minute. We don't have time to prepare and we end up making a lot of the materials on our own. So we are working overtime times 100 and we are burnt out. I think it is a bit too ambitious myself but I teach in a Title 1 school.

I agree, but it's like that with most curriculum- you're told what to teach, but not given the materials/resources to teach it. IMO, this is one of the biggest problems in education. But at least with Common Core, I feel like since it is so widespread, in a few years you will start seeing a plethora of textbooks and materials developed that support it.

I started a thread awhile back asking if teachers would prefer to have curriculum materials or make their own up and overwhelmingly was told that teachers preferred to make their own materials and not be given anything by the county they work for. Which is it? I agree that making your own materials every day is a bit too much when you have to teach them too. No one needs a teacher trying to be so innovative every day that he or she spends more time planning than actually teaching.

Teacher here, and I desperately wish I didn't have to make up my own materials. It is basically another full time job on top of the time I spend in the classroom. Teachers are human. When we get home we want to enjoy our lives like everyone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

That is the decision of your school or your school district. My child in MCPS spent a lot of time on math facts in class. In fact, parents on DCUM complain bitterly about this, because their advanced children already know the math facts and so how come they have to waste their time on this preschool math when they are ready for calculus.

It should be the decision of the TEACHER. Every class is different and every child is different. But everyone exept the teacher gets a say in this. That's the problem. The districts that are doing well are the ones that hire the best and then let them teach based on who is in front of them.

And this is why teacher made lessons are the best. It's like getting a custom made suit instead of something off the rack. It fits a whole lot better and it is the right color and material.

That sounds good, but I can tell you the reality of requiring teachers to create their own materials, Teachers spend hours searching online, going through workbooks, pulling together anything they can find that they can use to teach the lesson. Not necessarily teach it well, but just teach it. Those of you who have kids who have notebooks filled with photocopied notes and print outs, now know why. The teachers are just pulling together anything they can get their hands on to support the lesson, because they are often not given resources to teach what they are supposed to be teaching.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Teacher here. Most of my colleagues don't like the way it was implemented so quickly. They are writing the curriculum very quickly and not giving it to us until the last minute. We don't have time to prepare and we end up making a lot of the materials on our own. So we are working overtime times 100 and we are burnt out. I think it is a bit too ambitious myself but I teach in a Title 1 school.

I agree, but it's like that with most curriculum- you're told what to teach, but not given the materials/resources to teach it. IMO, this is one of the biggest problems in education. But at least with Common Core, I feel like since it is so widespread, in a few years you will start seeing a plethora of textbooks and materials developed that support it.

I started a thread awhile back asking if teachers would prefer to have curriculum materials or make their own up and overwhelmingly was told that teachers preferred to make their own materials and not be given anything by the county they work for. Which is it? I agree that making your own materials every day is a bit too much when you have to teach them too. No one needs a teacher trying to be so innovative every day that he or she spends more time planning than actually teaching.

Teacher here, and I desperately wish I didn't have to make up my own materials. It is basically another full time job on top of the time I spend in the classroom. Teachers are human. When we get home we want to enjoy our lives like everyone else.

I agree. I don't know why all those teachers were writing in saying they wanted to do all of it on their own. For some lessons, sure, but why every day you want to be a publisher and a teacher is beyond me. I can see why a school system would be confused though. They get blamed if the curriculum is too structured. Of course, teachers should be able to teach to the level of their students, but why wouldn't they want some resources to help them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

That is the decision of your school or your school district. My child in MCPS spent a lot of time on math facts in class. In fact, parents on DCUM complain bitterly about this, because their advanced children already know the math facts and so how come they have to waste their time on this preschool math when they are ready for calculus.

It should be the decision of the TEACHER. Every class is different and every child is different. But everyone exept the teacher gets a say in this. That's the problem. The districts that are doing well are the ones that hire the best and then let them teach based on who is in front of them.

And this is why teacher made lessons are the best. It's like getting a custom made suit instead of something off the rack. It fits a whole lot better and it is the right color and material.

That sounds good, but I can tell you the reality of requiring teachers to create their own materials, Teachers spend hours searching online, going through workbooks, pulling together anything they can find that they can use to teach the lesson. Not necessarily teach it well, but just teach it. Those of you who have kids who have notebooks filled with photocopied notes and print outs, now know why. The teachers are just pulling together anything they can get their hands on to support the lesson, because they are often not given resources to teach what they are supposed to be teaching.

yes, this is exactly what we're seeing. No textbooks and just these notebooks where the kids are given poorly copied handouts, some of which are poorly designed and some projects where they aren't given anything.