Common Core and what you can do

GO READ FOR YOURSELF EVERYONE!  I know there are well meaning folks out there trying to do their best with this debate, but read it for yourself.  It will take time.  Precious time.  But how else can you speak from a knowledgable place?  Or really know what is what?

The Ron Paul site is talking about a specific textbook.  If you’ve ever paid any attention to American History textbooks before now, you’d know that they (in general and regardless of curriculum) are wildly inaccurate, outdated, and in some cases blatantly wrong in their facts.  That’s an old story that has been around forever.  And yes, needs addressing.  But I don’t lump that in with the Common Core argument.  That’s a publishing issue.  Regardless of approved curriculum, you must have publishers creating accurate texts.  I say read the real stuff and skip the texts all together!  🙂  CM style.

Another post suggested that there is no way to know who is a member of the NGA that helped create/adpot the Common Core.  I googled them and this page seems to tell it all … not sure why that was an issue?  Maybe someone else will read this and elaborate.  Here is their site: http://www.nga.org/cms/home.html

Literature choices!!  @susie in ms – I wished you had expressed that that was what you were referring to in your original post.  It would have saved me from reading those disturbing passages from Toni Morrison’s novel The Bluest Eye. I frankly ask why that person felt the need to reprint all of that on the internet in the first place?  Clearly she could have been more tasteful and tactful to just reference the passages without quoting them outright.  Poor judgement in my opinion.  I was deeply offended.

Here is what I discovered when I went out on the search for where Common Core mandates that students (of any age) read Toni Morrison’s Bluest Eye.  They do not suggest it be read.  There is an excerpt from the novel – a CLEAN excerpt – used in Appendix B to describe, along with dozens of other text excerpts, the complexity of writing style that a highschool graduate should be exposed to in order to be prepared for college level literature. If I read it correctly, it looks as if it clearly states it is up to the educator to make the reading list.  That’s how my husband understood it too when I just bombared him with this passage. 🙂 

Here is their exact quote from Common Core Appendix B under Language Arts.  After this it goes on to quote dozens of excerpts of literature.

Exemplars of reading text complexity, quality, and range & sample performance tasks related to core standards

Selecting Text Exemplars

The following text samples primarily serve to exemplify the level of complexity and quality that the Standards require all students in a given grade band to engage with. Additionally, they are suggestive of the breadth of texts that students should encounter in the text types required by the Standards. The choices should serve as useful guideposts in helping educators select texts of similar complexity, quality, and range for their own classrooms. They expressly do not represent a partial or complete reading list.

And don’t forget, for me anyway, at the core of this is the simple fact that, whether CC is a better way or not, it’s inception into our state’s school systems by-passed the legislatures review and approval; those who are the ones who are our Reps.; those responsible for the state’s school systems. That is enough to make whatever new standard, unconstitutional, IME.

Then there’s the data-mining; intrusive questions to children about their families. It’s wrong.

Of course, I am one who believes that we should get rid of the Federal Dept. of Ed. so keep that in mind so full disclosure. I also didn’t like No Child Left Behind, so this isn’t a Republican/Democrat thing for me.

BTW, the info. on the first link of the ED.gov website is dated 2010. Things have transformed since then.

We also can’t deny the powerful effect of the NEA on our school system, it’s goals and vision for students and education. They help set the educational philosophy; and evidence shows that the philosophy is progressive/marxist.

Speaking of required reading. Although a few years old (around 2010), it continues to exhibit the direction our country’s educational establishment wants to take the educational establishments:

Adopted by the 2006 NEA Representative

Putting Our Values to Work pg 27; the first recommended reading:

Rules for Radicals by Saul Alinksy

http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/Putting_Our_Values_To_Work_Guide.pdf

The recommendation for NEA member teachers to read this book was on the main NEA recommended reading website a couple of years ago, but I can’t find it on the main site any more.

SO, we’re dealing with far more than just CC. This is about a pattern; a direction; a philosophy.

To create social change, a different society, a different citizenry; to change the roles of gov. and parents and the concept of the individual from what our Founder’s taught; and ultimately, changing the government; starting with the impressionable minds of the young.

As Abraham Lincoln said:

The Philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of the government in the next.

Rachel, we were posting at the same time! And you are right when you quoted Mr. Lincoln

The Philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of the government in the next.

Doesn’t it all seem sort of childish? (I’m not talking about you ladies, here!!! I’m talking about the people sitting behind the desks inventing all this nonsense.)

I mean, here are grown people whining about how some students “miss” something because it wasn’t taught in a particular school district….and how students ought to be able to move from place to place without missing a beat in school.

Hello!! Life happens!!! Sometimes people miss things. It’s okay, really it is.

Isn’t that how all the historical great people got to be great? They over came whatever challenges they faced?

I’m beginning to think the pencil pushers are a bunch of whiny 4th graders!! (Why did she get a treat and I didn’t??? She had to do more chores than me!!!)

You’re right when you say it’s a pattern — a pattern that has been in the making for more than two generations. It’s not just one thing, it’s a societal thing – lots of little things snowballing.

In my slightly pessimistic view, I don’t see how it can get better. I do see that we can try to hold on to our right to homeschool (and if not homeschooling, then be super-duper active in our children’s schools) and stand fast in our beliefs and do our best to affect change in our sphere of influence. (Which, thanks to the internet, can be really big.)

I did just wake up from a nap, so I hope that I’ve not made anyone mad! I’m just so annoyed at how the big people in society act like my children! *L* Lord, help me train them to be mature so that when they’re adults they don’t think life has to be “fair”!!

This is not new.

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I agree with you. Only it is getting worse. But then the Word said it would.

@Rachel, yes it is an older dated page, but since it was stating a law/policy and there did not seem to be a newer version I just thought it pertained.  Apologies if there is newer law/policy published out there.

@susie in ms, thanks.  I just wished I hadn’t seen that is all.  It is an extremely poor choice in my mind regardless of where and who uses it.  We all seem to agree on that one.

@2flowerboys, there isn’t a “list” of books per say.  Just suggested types of literature.  That was my point.  Folks seem to want to impress upon me that there is a mandated list and that is not true.  Whether or not states use the information shown anywhere in the standards is still up to them.  Obviously we all agree some are making some pretty poor choices.  But I applauded a lot of the suggested poetry, drama and literature on there versus the watered down hoo hoo they have most public school kids reading now because they fear they can’t handle something like Shakespeare or the real founding father’s texts.  That was my only point really.

I do not agree in the negative, here we go straight to ****, this is the beginning of the end types of philosophy though.  I’m really positiive and I always tend to err on the side of there being some logical, good way out of things.  Call me the optimist.  Compared to the rest of the world this country has some impressive things going for it.  Problems, yes, always but still some very impressive things too.  

Ok.  I think this winds me down.  I’ve had enough talking about Common Core!    Great discussion ladies!