The controversial Common Core State Standards are already in our schools – yet most of us know very little about what these new standards are and how they are impacting students and teachers. Here are some basic facts about the standards:
• Delaware never officially voted to accept the Common Core. The state “agreed” to meet the standards in exchange for receiving Race to the Top money. The information on Common Core was buried in the fine print.
• The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), which is used to measure a student’s mastery of reading, writing, and math, has been modified to meet Common Core objectives. All Delaware students take this test in 11th grade whether they go to college or not. This means no matter how your child is educated they must know these standards.
• The standards for reading are changing.
Students in younger grades will read “literary” texts- fiction books for kids. High school students will read “informative” texts like the Declaration of Independence and government documents to understand context.
• The Common Core Standards don’t officially require data collection on students. However, there is no way for the standards to work for each student unless the government is collecting information on your children, with or without your knowledge or permission.
• Teaching methods are changing. For example, students will learn addition and subtraction by drawing boxes with dots inside instead of using numbers.
The truth is Common Core’s purpose is to create one standard for all students, no matter how good or bad any student is. If you want to learn more about how this program will affect your family or your children, please visit us at
http://caesarrodney.org
Samuel Ramirez Friedman is the Communications Director of the Caesar Rodney Institute.
