"Teacher of the Year" quits over Common Core tests

[Anonymous]

Ah, so kids should just read, have fun and let's all just call it a day. Never bother seeing if they actually connected to anything, if they actually understood what they were reading, or if they can cogently explain any of it. Might as well just be reading the Sunday comics.

Makes one wonder what the point of reading was in the first place.

Wow. Just wow. Yes, in third grade they should read and have fun. If they are having fun, they are understanding. CC reduces reading to drudgery for third graders. Great.

You really don't get it at all.

[Anonymous]

^ This conversation and that article are precisely why people think schools are becoming little more than a glorified daycare, and why people are so frustrated with our school system.

There are obviously some in education who just care about kids showing up each day, and having it be "fun" and be damned if they actually should LEARN anything. These exchanges only serve to keep reinforcing that dismal opinion of our educational system.

[Anonymous]

There are obviously some in education who just care about kids showing up each day, and having it be "fun" and be damned if they actually should LEARN anything. These exchanges only serve to keep reinforcing that dismal opinion of our educational system.

Did you read the article? That teacher is not just in there having "fun". She is thinking seriously about what the kids are and are not getting out of the reading and why. She has a serious concern.

[Anonymous]

Third grade... I think by then I had probably read a hundred Tom Swift, Nancy Drew and other books, along with CS Lewis' Narnia series and a bunch of other things... I certainly wouldn't have had a problem with the assignment or the question.

[Anonymous]

^ This conversation and that article are precisely why people think schools are becoming little more than a glorified daycare, and why people are so frustrated with our school system.

There are obviously some in education who just care about kids showing up each day, and having it be "fun" and be damned if they actually should LEARN anything. These exchanges only serve to keep reinforcing that dismal opinion of our educational system.

You are a very "black and white" thinker. Education can be fun you know. Children can actually have fun and learn at the same time. Imagine that. I guess that never happened for you.

[Anonymous]

Third grade... I think by then I had probably read a hundred Tom Swift, Nancy Drew and other books, along with CS Lewis' Narnia series and a bunch of other things... I certainly wouldn't have had a problem with the assignment or the question.

Do you realize that this is your adult self thinking back to your third grade self and drawing a conclusion? The teacher in the article is in the room with the third graders as they are as third graders. She doesn't have to surmise the way you are. She is right there. Do you think she is a "bad teacher"? Do you think she should not question any standards and just do as she is told without thinking about whether it is working for her students? Do you think every student is just like you were in third grade (if you think you are right about this)?

[Anonymous]

Do you realize that this is your adult self thinking back to your third grade self and drawing a conclusion? The teacher in the article is in the room with the third graders as they are as third graders. She doesn't have to surmise the way you are. She is right there. Do you think she is a "bad teacher"? Do you think she should not question any standards and just do as she is told without thinking about whether it is working for her students? Do you think every student is just like you were in third grade (if you think you are right about this)?

Of course, that is what he/she thinks. Anyone who dares to criticize the PARCC or Common Core is wrong in their minds.

[Anonymous]

In 3rd grade I and pretty much any of my classmates sure as hell could have told you a lot more specificity about what happened from a book and why than "I was sad. I like dogs." Same goes for my kid, who could sit and talk to you for an hour about what and why of a book that he just finished. This is by the way a kid who reads 2-3 books a week, certainly no loss of love for reading.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

^ This conversation and that article are precisely why people think schools are becoming little more than a glorified daycare, and why people are so frustrated with our school system.

There are obviously some in education who just care about kids showing up each day, and having it be "fun" and be damned if they actually should LEARN anything. These exchanges only serve to keep reinforcing that dismal opinion of our educational system.

You are a very "black and white" thinker. Education can be fun you know. Children can actually have fun and learn at the same time. Imagine that. I guess that never happened for you.

Seems to me the author of that article and the folks saying "OMG, asking a kid about WHY in a book destroys all fun" are the ones thinking in black and white. After all, they've already come to the foregone conclusion that reading has been forever ruined because the teacher asked a kid a question. Once you so much as tap something with the Common Core wand, it is automatically destroyed henceforth and forever until the end of time. That's what they keep telling us over and over and over and over. So don't presume to tell me about "black and white thinking." Pffffft!

[Anonymous]

http://www.chicagonow.com/little-kids-big-city/2011/08/is-your-child-ready-for-first-grade-1979-edition/

Great list about what incoming 1st graders USED to be expected to do....much less academic, more more competent at life:

...

"This book was first published in 1979, so I have to say it comes across as quite dated at times. So let's take a look, shall we? The idea here is that about 10 yesses out of this list of 12 would indicate readiness for 1st grade.

1. Will your child be six years, six months or older when he begins first grade and starts receiving reading instruction?

2. Does your child have two to five permanent or second teeth?

3. Can you child tell, in such a way that his speech is understood by a school crossing guard or policeman, where he lives?

4. Can he draw and color and stay within the lines of the design being colored?

5. Can he stand on one foot with eyes closed for five to ten seconds?

6. Can he ride a small two-wheeled bicycle without helper wheels?

7. Can he tell left hand from right?

8. Can he travel alone in the neighborhood (four to eight blocks) to store, school, playground, or to a friend's home?

9. Can he be away from you all day without being upset?

10. Can he repeat an eight- to ten-word sentence, if you say it once, as "The boy ran all the way home from the store"?

11. Can he count eight to ten pennies correctly?

12. Does your child try to write or copy letters or numbers?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Groan. One book, one question, is going to "wring the love of reading out of kids?" Doing some serious eyerolling at the author of that article.

Cut me a fucking break.


Your use of language indicates you could have used some more good literature in your life.






I've probably read more good literature in my life than you ever will.

You might have read some, but you certainly didn't get much out of it.

The article shows what happens when you get those so called "experts" from the "computerized data testing club" to write the standards. Yeah, they probably read a ton of good literature. It shows.

The only thing "that shows" is your presumptuous condescension. Let me guess, you must be the one who claims to have multiple advanced degrees in education, yet who, with post after post, has demonstrated quite clearly that she doesn't seem to even understand the basics about testing or the standards. But I guess we're all supposed to bow down to you and your claimed education and experience.... um, despite your consistently demonstrated lack of facts or common sense.

[Anonymous]

Seems to me the author of that article and the folks saying "OMG, asking a kid about WHY in a book destroys all fun" are the ones thinking in black and white. After all, they've already come to the foregone conclusion that reading has been forever ruined because the teacher asked a kid a question. Once you so much as tap something with the Common Core wand, it is automatically destroyed henceforth and forever until the end of time. That's what they keep telling us over and over and over and over. So don't presume to tell me about "black and white thinking." Pffffft!

It's really hard to have a conversation with someone who has already decided that they are right about everything and that anyone else's experience is invalid.

I don't believe CC would choose you to be its spokesperson if they were to name one. You would just dig their grave deeper.

[Anonymous]

Did you people even read the article? The teacher was trying to get the kids to discuss the book--but she had so trained them with Common Core, that they were afraid to answer because they thought they would have to cite a particular passage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:http://www.chicagonow.com/little-kids-big-city/2011/08/is-your-child-ready-for-first-grade-1979-edition/

Great list about what incoming 1st graders USED to be expected to do....much less academic, more more competent at life:

...

"This book was first published in 1979, so I have to say it comes across as quite dated at times. So let's take a look, shall we? The idea here is that about 10 yesses out of this list of 12 would indicate readiness for 1st grade.

1. Will your child be six years, six months or older when he begins first grade and starts receiving reading instruction?

2. Does your child have two to five permanent or second teeth?

3. Can you child tell, in such a way that his speech is understood by a school crossing guard or policeman, where he lives?

4. Can he draw and color and stay within the lines of the design being colored?

5. Can he stand on one foot with eyes closed for five to ten seconds?

6. Can he ride a small two-wheeled bicycle without helper wheels?

7. Can he tell left hand from right?

8. Can he travel alone in the neighborhood (four to eight blocks) to store, school, playground, or to a friend's home?

9. Can he be away from you all day without being upset?

10. Can he repeat an eight- to ten-word sentence, if you say it once, as "The boy ran all the way home from the store"?

11. Can he count eight to ten pennies correctly?

12. Does your child try to write or copy letters or numbers?

Heavens to Betsy. And Common Core is so massively developmentally inappropriate and light years ahead of that. Let's see...

Count 8 to 10 pennies vs. Count to 20 in Common Core. Ummm.... nope, not really a leap

Try to write or copy letters or numbers vs. print many upper and lower case letters in Common Core. Umm.... nope, not really a leap there either

The stuff in Common Core is mostly what was expected of kids growing up in the 1960s and 1970s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Seems to me the author of that article and the folks saying "OMG, asking a kid about WHY in a book destroys all fun" are the ones thinking in black and white. After all, they've already come to the foregone conclusion that reading has been forever ruined because the teacher asked a kid a question. Once you so much as tap something with the Common Core wand, it is automatically destroyed henceforth and forever until the end of time. That's what they keep telling us over and over and over and over. So don't presume to tell me about "black and white thinking." Pffffft!

It's really hard to have a conversation with someone who has already decided that they are right about everything and that anyone else's experience is invalid.

I don't believe CC would choose you to be its spokesperson if they were to name one. You would just dig their grave deeper.

That's PRECISELY what the anti-CC folks have done. They have decided they are right about everything and that everyone else's experience is invalid.