Education A S P Ec I AL S Ec T I O N O F T H E R I v E R T OW N S E N T E R P R I S E ✍ JA N uA Ry 1 7 , 2 0 1 4
Who’s afraid of the
COMMON CORE?
A
By JAcKIE LuPO
re you nervous about what the Common Core will mean to your kids? It seems that just about everybody is these days. When the first round of Common-Core-linked state tests were administered last spring in New York State, the proportion of students who were performing at “grade level” dropped precipitously in many districts compared to the year before. It wasn’t that students had suddenly become “dumber” than the kids who had been in their grade the previous year — it was that the rules of the game had suddenly changed: new tests, new criteria for grading and new expectations for what skills students should have learned before taking the test. At public forums last fall, angry parents, teachers and school administrators confronted New York State education commissioner John King over the rocky implementation of the Common Core. Some even demanded his resignation. Teachers were up in arms because they felt Common Core testing had been rolled out before students were ready, after less than a year of teaching to the standards. Teachers also objected to being evaluated
on the basis of students’ scores, and parents objected to the amount of time being spent in class to prepare students for the new tests. Even homeowners without children pored over their districts’ test results to be sure their home values would not be affected by declining scores. But in a recent letter to school superintendents, principals and other school leaders, King defended the Common Core Standards. “We understand that implementation of the Common Core and teacher/principal evaluation in a time of limited resources has come with significant challenges,” King wrote. “The Board of Regents and I knew we would encounter a good amount of concern in the public forums. We want — and need — to hear from teachers, parents, and students as these important changes in practice occur in classrooms, schools and communities across the state.” Regardless of what parents might want to say to the state education commissioner, the Common Core is here. But what is it, exactly? The first thing to know about the socalled “Common Core Curriculum” is that it is not a curriculum per se. It’s a set of standards or benchmarks for the work students should be able to do at each stage Continued on page 17A
INSIDE EDucATION 4A BOOKSHELF: a teacher speaks up… and hopes people listen
10A APPLyING TO cOLLEGE: Finding your dream university 11A PAyING FOR cOLLEGE: Finance a higher education 3A STuDy SKILLS: important
lessons for students of all ages
5A PREScHOOL: letting kids be
kids just a little while longer
6A PuBLIc vS. PRIvATE: your child’s education options
14A A TuTORIAL FROM TuTORS: advice for parents and children
16A RAISING A READER: helping children love to read 18A-19A NOTEBOOK