Common Core Standards
have been a mystery to me until just recently.
I didn’t attend school in a state, or time, where standards were focused
on, but since we moved to Washington State, my children have been elbow deep in
the teaching of the standards. It all
seems very complicated to me, especially the math side. I remember when the No Child Left Behind Act
was implemented and I also remember how controversial it was. Now, with Common Core Standards working hand
in hand with the act, more controversy has arisen. The Beach, Thein, and Webb article does a
good job of justifying and describing how Common Core is meant to work for
teachers and students, and how it is designed to present uniformity in
curriculum so students don’t fall behind if they have to move. So what’s the problem? Not all states have adopted CCSS, and family
transfers don’t just happen within the same state.
We
moved here from Texas in 2014. My son
was in first grade and had been taught without CCSS for three years. He had an amazing handle on his academics
already, but when introduced to CCSS standards, his academics took a
plunge. Not only did he become very
confused, but he was intent on the fact that he was stupid. He had been taught to memorize and regurgitate
and that critical thinking was for “big kids”.
After he finally got a handle on the teaching methods of CCSS, he has
blossomed academically.
In
reading the CCSS standards for reading, I noticed each grade requires the achievement
of the same standards, only, when students advance to the next grade level, the
standard becomes more detailed requiring a deepening of thought and
understanding of text. I noticed sixth
through eighth grade have the same standards for three years, and high school
standards are lumped as grades 9 and 10, and 11 and 12. So does this mean a student gets two and
three years to master the standard?
The idea of teaching to
the test in Beach, Thein, and Webb’s article really struck a nerve with
me. I feel that the greatest downfall of
CCSS and No Child Left Behind is this notion that teaching to the test is
replacing real teaching and learning.
Schools are so worried about reaching standards and passing the state’s
requirements that teachers are losing the passion they had before they started
teaching and students are terrified they won’t graduate if they don’t fill in
the correct bubble. I have seen and
taken the current test Washington State requires, and it is no easy task.
While the idea behind
CCSS is wonderful, and its founders have the students best interest in mind, a
big flaw still looms- high-stake testing.
I won’t truly understand the complexities and benefits of CCSS until I
begin teaching, but I do see it at work, in my home, every day. My biggest concern is if this “call to
standards” is really going to work, it needs to be adopted nationwide.
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