Common Core – If the Unions Support it, There Must be Something Wrong.

[HenryBHough]

I remember my sixth grade teacher joining in a classroom discussion surrounding the then mere proposal to have a federal Department of Education. Pointing out that any control of schools beyond LOCAL tends to result in government deciding, in the interest of the party in power, controlling how people are allowed to think. Of course local elections were non-partisan at the time so she had a point.

As we have seen.

 

[Jackson]

As I've stated in posts above the idea of having a nationalized standard doesn't make sense
As I've stated in posts above the idea of having a nationalized standard doesn't make sense. Different schools have different needs. Different regions/states have different needs. Most standards are written from adults FOR adults.

"Different schools have different needs."

How is your school different from my school? Even if my school is in the inner city and yours is not, our goals are the same. I should be meeting the same grade ;level you are. If I am teaching grade 6 or grade 10 the curricula is the same but I may have to do double somersaults to get there. And I do somersaults with parents to get there, too.

I taught in the inner city for 32 years. I know how to do somersaults.

"Different regions/states have different needs."

Here's where I have a big problem. I came from one state that had a nationally standardized test given every spring to a southern state that gave "their own" watered down test. Oh my how everybody got 98%ile! What a crock! Testing is important to insure that you school/city/state is making the grade. But you have to compare apples to apples.

 

[Jackson]

MANY parents don't care how their children perform in school. Sad but true.

Parents have to come to the schools and look out for their child's best interests. "Scholars" can pick their educational jargon for the year or the publishers fad for the decade, but we want to see that the needs of our own are being met. The heck with the latest trends.

I can agree to an extent. But if you create a dialogue early in the year it is easier to get them on your side and create a rapport. Let them know you know they are a caring parent and would want to know how their child is doing in class. I always let them know the good news before the bad surfaced and they appeared to care and talked to their kids when the bad came. They actually came to school. Not always, but a majority.

 

[Jackson]

I remember my sixth grade teacher joining in a classroom discussion surrounding the then mere proposal to have a federal Department of Education. Pointing out that any control of schools beyond LOCAL tends to result in government deciding, in the interest of the party in power, controlling how people are allowed to think. Of course local elections were non-partisan at the time so she had a point.

As we have seen.

Big Brother! Of course she was right. And one thing I worry about Common COre is in the elementary grades that we ger=t away from the academics and keep social engineering with the first grade book, AMIGO! and TWO MOMS TWO DADS! Cut that crap out! Lets have Dick and Jane and Ruff the dog. In kdg! No more teaching Spanish in first grade and why dad is wearing a dress.

 

[bodecea]

I remember my sixth grade teacher joining in a classroom discussion surrounding the then mere proposal to have a federal Department of Education. Pointing out that any control of schools beyond LOCAL tends to result in government deciding, in the interest of the party in power, controlling how people are allowed to think. Of course local elections were non-partisan at the time so she had a point.

As we have seen.

Big Brother! Of course she was right. And one thing I worry about Common COre is in the elementary grades that we ger=t away from the academics and keep social engineering with the first grade book, AMIGO! and TWO MOMS TWO DADS! Cut that crap out! Lets have Dick and Jane and Ruff the dog. In kdg! No more teaching Spanish in first grade and why dad is wearing a dress.

Dick and Jane was a horribly sexist book.

 

[Jackson]

I remember my sixth grade teacher joining in a classroom discussion surrounding the then mere proposal to have a federal Department of Education. Pointing out that any control of schools beyond LOCAL tends to result in government deciding, in the interest of the party in power, controlling how people are allowed to think. Of course local elections were non-partisan at the time so she had a point.

As we have seen.

Big Brother! Of course she was right. And one thing I worry about Common COre is in the elementary grades that we ger=t away from the academics and keep social engineering with the first grade book, AMIGO! and TWO MOMS TWO DADS! Cut that crap out! Lets have Dick and Jane and Ruff the dog. In kdg! No more teaching Spanish in first grade and why dad is wearing a dress.

Dick and Jane was a horribly sexist book.

LOL! How could you possibly remember? Just because Mom didn't work?

 

[JT8691]

My school is different than many schools because most of my students have ZERO access to the Internet. They have it at the media center 15 mins before school starts, lunch, and 15 after school. And when they take the standardized tests on computers, and they sit down and don't know how to find the "A" key. I'm not using figurative speech when I say this either.

How could you possibly accurately compare their test scores to kids who have access to computers and the Internet on a daily basis? You can't.

My students go into tests on computers without knowing how to type, and it takes them MUCH MUCH longer to type, and as a result they're at a severe disadvantage.

Everything's moving into the future and I get it, I really do. But not everybody has access to the Internet, and not everybody has access to computers.

Now I know that's not necessarily Common Core but A LOT of the work I need to give to the students under Common Core requires online access. That's a major problem. It's just not realistic.

Also Common Core is also largely designed to promote college. And that's how high schools are designed. And that's great-it really is. But guess what? Most of my kids don't know where their meals are coming from over the weekend....college just isn't an option for many of them.

"Different schools have different needs."

How is your school different from my school? Even if my school is in the inner city and yours is not, our goals are the same. I should be meeting the same grade ;level you are. If I am teaching grade 6 or grade 10 the curricula is the same but I may have to do double somersaults to get there. And I do somersaults with parents to get there, too.

I taught in the inner city for 32 years. I know how to do somersaults.

"Different regions/states have different needs."

Here's where I have a big problem. I came from one state that had a nationally standardized test given every spring to a southern state that gave "their own" watered down test. Oh my how everybody got 98%ile! What a crock! Testing is important to insure that you school/city/state is making the grade. But you have to compare apples to apples.

"Different schools have different needs."

How is your school different from my school? Even if my school is in the inner city and yours is not, our goals are the same. I should be meeting the same grade ;level you are. If I am teaching grade 6 or grade 10 the curricula is the same but I may have to do double somersaults to get there. And I do somersaults with parents to get there, too.

I taught in the inner city for 32 years. I know how to do somersaults.

"Different regions/states have different needs."

Here's where I have a big problem. I came from one state that had a nationally standardized test given every spring to a southern state that gave "their own" watered down test. Oh my how everybody got 98%ile! What a crock! Testing is important to insure that you school/city/state is making the grade. But you have to compare apples to apples.

I teach at a title 1 school, and even for title 1 the students are poor. It's not an inner-city school (it's rural), but honestly many of them don't know what they're going to be eating over the weekend. I'm not using figurative language there.

I'm in my late 20s, and even from when I graduated high school it's a COMPLETELY different world in high school. Grades are online now, and much of the work I have to assign requires the internet to use...the problem is obvious. The majority of my students don't have access to the Internet at home. But resources that I have to give them in class requires the Internet to use (because people just assume that everybody's online now-but it's NOT true).

These kids have to take their tests on computers. Most of these kids have no idea how to type and it slows them down. They need to achieve certain scores on those tests to graduate. I can't allot time in class to teach them how to type...where are they going to learn that skill? Seriously. When every kid had a pencil and a piece of paper the playing field was even, plop a keyboard in front of them and all of a sudden it's completely different. Everyone has access to pencils/paper...but certainly not computers. People don't think of that.

As for Common Core as I said different schools have different needs. The majority of my students aren't interested in college. They're more interested in working right after school's over. That's what they need to learn how to do. But they don't get those resources. And instead we prep them for a higher education that's just unrealistic for most of them (not all).

 

[Jackson]

My school is different than many schools because most of my students have ZERO access to the Internet. They have it at the media center 15 mins before school starts, lunch, and 15 after school. And when they take the standardized tests on computers, and they sit down and don't know how to find the "A" key. I'm not using figurative speech when I say this either.

How could you possibly accurately compare their test scores to kids who have access to computers and the Internet on a daily basis? You can't.

My students go into tests on computers without knowing how to type, and it takes them MUCH MUCH longer to type, and as a result they're at a severe disadvantage.

Everything's moving into the future and I get it, I really do. But not everybody has access to the Internet, and not everybody has access to computers.

Now I know that's not necessarily Common Core but A LOT of the work I need to give to the students under Common Core requires online access. That's a major problem. It's just not realistic.

Also Common Core is also largely designed to promote college. And that's how high schools are designed. And that's great-it really is. But guess what? Most of my kids don't know where their meals are coming from over the weekend....college just isn't an option for many of them.

"Different schools have different needs."

How is your school different from my school? Even if my school is in the inner city and yours is not, our goals are the same. I should be meeting the same grade ;level you are. If I am teaching grade 6 or grade 10 the curricula is the same but I may have to do double somersaults to get there. And I do somersaults with parents to get there, too.

I taught in the inner city for 32 years. I know how to do somersaults.

"Different regions/states have different needs."

Here's where I have a big problem. I came from one state that had a nationally standardized test given every spring to a southern state that gave "their own" watered down test. Oh my how everybody got 98%ile! What a crock! Testing is important to insure that you school/city/state is making the grade. But you have to compare apples to apples.

"Different schools have different needs."

How is your school different from my school? Even if my school is in the inner city and yours is not, our goals are the same. I should be meeting the same grade ;level you are. If I am teaching grade 6 or grade 10 the curricula is the same but I may have to do double somersaults to get there. And I do somersaults with parents to get there, too.

I taught in the inner city for 32 years. I know how to do somersaults.

"Different regions/states have different needs."

Here's where I have a big problem. I came from one state that had a nationally standardized test given every spring to a southern state that gave "their own" watered down test. Oh my how everybody got 98%ile! What a crock! Testing is important to insure that you school/city/state is making the grade. But you have to compare apples to apples.

I teach at a title 1 school, and even for title 1 the students are poor. It's not an inner-city school (it's rural), but honestly many of them don't know what they're going to be eating over the weekend. I'm not using figurative language there.

I'm in my late 20s, and even from when I graduated high school it's a COMPLETELY different world in high school. Grades are online now, and much of the work I have to assign requires the internet to use...the problem is obvious. The majority of my students don't have access to the Internet at home. But resources that I have to give them in class requires the Internet to use (because people just assume that everybody's online now-but it's NOT true).

These kids have to take their tests on computers. Most of these kids have no idea how to type and it slows them down. They need to achieve certain scores on those tests to graduate. I can't allot time in class to teach them how to type...where are they going to learn that skill? Seriously. When every kid had a pencil and a piece of paper the playing field was even, plop a keyboard in front of them and all of a sudden it's completely different. Everyone has access to pencils/paper...but certainly not computers. People don't think of that.

As for Common Core as I said different schools have different needs. The majority of my students aren't interested in college. They're more interested in working right after school's over. That's what they need to learn how to do. But they don't get those resources. And instead we prep them for a higher education that's just unrealistic for most of them (not all).

You say that the assignments you give require internet use but the students don't have access to the internet at home. So, do they do the assignments in class or just not do it?

When I was a kid, I sometimes had to go to the library to do research for projects. It's not unthinkable that kids can do that now. It would be useful for you to send home an informational sheet to parents where the students can use computers and the times they are available.

My school was Title I as well. I am very familiar with the make up of those schools. Don't say the parents don't care. Most do. They just have a lot on their plate. They appreciate a caring teacher who goes a step above for their child.

Be sure and let them know when their kids performed well in class. It goes a long way in case there is a conflict between you and the student. The parents will always side with you if you created a bond early on with them. Just one of the things I've learned through the years.

As for the students who don't know how to type, the "hunt and peck" method will become more proficient as time goes by. Students are on the computers almost every day in the early grades now. That's in the Title I as in all other schools.

 

[ricechickie]

I remember my sixth grade teacher joining in a classroom discussion surrounding the then mere proposal to have a federal Department of Education. Pointing out that any control of schools beyond LOCAL tends to result in government deciding, in the interest of the party in power, controlling how people are allowed to think. Of course local elections were non-partisan at the time so she had a point.

As we have seen.

Big Brother! Of course she was right. And one thing I worry about Common COre is in the elementary grades that we ger=t away from the academics and keep social engineering with the first grade book, AMIGO! and TWO MOMS TWO DADS! Cut that crap out! Lets have Dick and Jane and Ruff the dog. In kdg! No more teaching Spanish in first grade and why dad is wearing a dress.

Teaching any language earlier is better. That's when kids pick it up better. It's not social engineering, it's when kids learn languages.

 

[Jackson]

I remember my sixth grade teacher joining in a classroom discussion surrounding the then mere proposal to have a federal Department of Education. Pointing out that any control of schools beyond LOCAL tends to result in government deciding, in the interest of the party in power, controlling how people are allowed to think. Of course local elections were non-partisan at the time so she had a point.

As we have seen.

Big Brother! Of course she was right. And one thing I worry about Common COre is in the elementary grades that we ger=t away from the academics and keep social engineering with the first grade book, AMIGO! and TWO MOMS TWO DADS! Cut that crap out! Lets have Dick and Jane and Ruff the dog. In kdg! No more teaching Spanish in first grade and why dad is wearing a dress.

Teaching any language earlier is better. That's when kids pick it up better. It's not social engineering, it's when kids learn languages.

What I meant by that is the kids are reading their first books and the publishers are throwing in Spanish words. Let them learn how to read English before throwing in a foreign language. It is only introduced once and never repeated.

 

[ricechickie]

What I meant by that is the kids are reading their first books and the publishers are throwing in Spanish words. Let them learn how to read English before throwing in a foreign language. It is only introduced once and never repeated.

I guess I still don't see the problem. Again, children's brains have a great capacity to learn language at a young age.

 

[Jackson]

What I meant by that is the kids are reading their first books and the publishers are throwing in Spanish words. Let them learn how to read English before throwing in a foreign language. It is only introduced once and never repeated.

I guess I still don't see the problem. Again, children's brains have a great capacity to learn language at a young age.

The problem is,the publishers, just to play up a social agenda, throw in a story about a Mexican little girl going to her grandma ( spanish word for grandma, spanish word for house and bus, etc), By the time you get through explaining the spanish words, about 15 of them and their pronounciation, meaning and the meaning in context, we've spent three times the amount of time on the story. Never again are they going to hear these words, much less see them in print and these little first graders were having enough difficulty with the English words in story by themselves. The English unknown words for the story were 12. Most teachers did as I, skipped the story and went on to the next.

Teaching 15 foreign words, 12 new vocabulary words and reading the story with accurate context and comprehension for a new reader is just too much. I made up a story using the 12 vocabulary words so they would not lose anything and kept on going.

 

[ricechickie]

What I meant by that is the kids are reading their first books and the publishers are throwing in Spanish words. Let them learn how to read English before throwing in a foreign language. It is only introduced once and never repeated.

I guess I still don't see the problem. Again, children's brains have a great capacity to learn language at a young age.

The problem is,the publishers, just to play up a social agenda, throw in a story about a Mexican little girl going to her grandma ( spanish word for grandma, spanish word for house and bus, etc), By the time you get through explaining the spanish words, about 15 of them and their pronounciation, meaning and the meaning in context, we've spent three times the amount of time on the story. Never again are they going to hear these words, much less see them in print and these little first graders were having enough difficulty with the English words in story by themselves. The English unknown words for the story were 12. Most teachers did as I, skipped the story and went on to the next.

Teaching 15 foreign words, 12 new vocabulary words and reading the story with accurate context and comprehension for a new reader is just too much.

Do you often make those judgment calls about words that you don't think they have to know?

And with all the immigrants coming in to the country, don't bet on them not hearing those Spanish words again.

 

[ricechickie]

Also, if the story is any good at all, read it a few times.

 

[Jackson]

What I meant by that is the kids are reading their first books and the publishers are throwing in Spanish words. Let them learn how to read English before throwing in a foreign language. It is only introduced once and never repeated.

I guess I still don't see the problem. Again, children's brains have a great capacity to learn language at a young age.

The problem is,the publishers, just to play up a social agenda, throw in a story about a Mexican little girl going to her grandma ( spanish word for grandma, spanish word for house and bus, etc), By the time you get through explaining the spanish words, about 15 of them and their pronounciation, meaning and the meaning in context, we've spent three times the amount of time on the story. Never again are they going to hear these words, much less see them in print and these little first graders were having enough difficulty with the English words in story by themselves. The English unknown words for the story were 12. Most teachers did as I, skipped the story and went on to the next.

Teaching 15 foreign words, 12 new vocabulary words and reading the story with accurate context and comprehension for a new reader is just too much.

Do you often make those judgment calls about words that you don't think they have to know?

And with all the immigrants coming in to the country, don't bet on them not hearing those Spanish words again.

LOL! As a professional, yes, I do make judgment calls. 27 words are too many for a beginning reader to learn in one story. We have immigrants coming in from various countries. Do we need Asian words to cover those youngsters as well? We are living in America. Our first priority is teaching them to read what they are going to see in the next grade. Learning languages is not in my curriculum, but learning how to read English is. A spattering of 15 words taught ONE WEEK Period is not going to make my class bilingual.

 

[ricechickie]

What I meant by that is the kids are reading their first books and the publishers are throwing in Spanish words. Let them learn how to read English before throwing in a foreign language. It is only introduced once and never repeated.

I guess I still don't see the problem. Again, children's brains have a great capacity to learn language at a young age.

The problem is,the publishers, just to play up a social agenda, throw in a story about a Mexican little girl going to her grandma ( spanish word for grandma, spanish word for house and bus, etc), By the time you get through explaining the spanish words, about 15 of them and their pronounciation, meaning and the meaning in context, we've spent three times the amount of time on the story. Never again are they going to hear these words, much less see them in print and these little first graders were having enough difficulty with the English words in story by themselves. The English unknown words for the story were 12. Most teachers did as I, skipped the story and went on to the next.

Teaching 15 foreign words, 12 new vocabulary words and reading the story with accurate context and comprehension for a new reader is just too much.

Do you often make those judgment calls about words that you don't think they have to know?

And with all the immigrants coming in to the country, don't bet on them not hearing those Spanish words again.

LOL! As a professional, yes, I do make judgment calls. 27 words are too many for a beginning reader to learn in one story. We have immigrants coming in from various countries. Do we need Asian words to cover those youngsters as well? We are living in America. Our first priority is teaching them to read what they are going to see in the next grade. Learning languages is not in my curriculum, but learning how to read English is. A spattering of 15 words taught ONE WEEK Period is not going to make my class bilingual.

Fair enough. So, is rereading the book a few times not an option?

 

[Jackson]

What I meant by that is the kids are reading their first books and the publishers are throwing in Spanish words. Let them learn how to read English before throwing in a foreign language. It is only introduced once and never repeated.

I guess I still don't see the problem. Again, children's brains have a great capacity to learn language at a young age.

The problem is,the publishers, just to play up a social agenda, throw in a story about a Mexican little girl going to her grandma ( spanish word for grandma, spanish word for house and bus, etc), By the time you get through explaining the spanish words, about 15 of them and their pronounciation, meaning and the meaning in context, we've spent three times the amount of time on the story. Never again are they going to hear these words, much less see them in print and these little first graders were having enough difficulty with the English words in story by themselves. The English unknown words for the story were 12. Most teachers did as I, skipped the story and went on to the next.

Teaching 15 foreign words, 12 new vocabulary words and reading the story with accurate context and comprehension for a new reader is just too much.

Do you often make those judgment calls about words that you don't think they have to know?

And with all the immigrants coming in to the country, don't bet on them not hearing those Spanish words again.

LOL! As a professional, yes, I do make judgment calls. 27 words are too many for a beginning reader to learn in one story. We have immigrants coming in from various countries. Do we need Asian words to cover those youngsters as well? We are living in America. Our first priority is teaching them to read what they are going to see in the next grade. Learning languages is not in my curriculum, but learning how to read English is. A spattering of 15 words taught ONE WEEK Period is not going to make my class bilingual.

Fair enough. So, is rereading the book a few times not an option?

The children have 5 books to cover in the first grade. It would be a luxury to be able to reread books, but not possible.

 

[ricechickie]

The children have 5 books to cover in the first grade. It would be a luxury to be able to reread books, but not possible.

A story in each book? Or several?

 

[Jackson]

The children have 5 books to cover in the first grade. It would be a luxury to be able to reread books, but not possible.

A story in each book? Or several?

Oh, several. We have three pre primers which are a series of stories, But easy stories then a hard bound book of much harder stories in a primer and a very hard book which is a 1st reader. No other grade asks so much of students than the first grade.

 

[ricechickie]

Thanks.