New Common Core math curriculum a disaster

[daughtersrus]

There are other countries that educate all of their children but they might structure the education to fit the student's abilities. Whether this is appropriate or not is debatable of course.

In the US, the student's education should be structured to fit the students abilities through the IEP but the tests are standardized.

 

[jodifla]

curious-how are the 'groups' determined? by the teacher or the students? who determines who in the group has the ability to ask questions of the teacher (are 'positions' within the group assigned/up for grabs/rotated or fixed)?

The roles rotate apparently. The teacher determines the groups.

And the book states clearly on it that is Common Core Math. So this is the wave of the future with Common Core, even if states change it up slightly.

 

[jodifla]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/06/18/the-common-cores-fundamental-trouble/



"Nor are we exaggerating the potential for disaster. Consider this description from Charlotte Danielson, a highly regarded mainstream authority on teacher evaluation and a strong supporter of the Common Core:

I do worry somewhat about the assessments—I’m concerned that we may be headed for a train wreck there. The test items I’ve seen that have been released so far are extremely challenging. If I had to take a test that was entirely comprised of items like that, I’m not sure that I would pass it—and I’ve got a bunch of degrees. So I do worry that in some schools we’ll have 80 percent or some large number of students failing. That’s what I mean by train wreck.

Reports from the first wave of Common Core testing are already confirming these fears. This spring students, parents, and teachers in New York schools responded to administration of new Common Core tests developed by Pearson Inc. with a general outcry against their length, difficulty, and inappropriate content. Pearson included corporate logos and promotional material in reading passages. Students reported feeling overstressed and underprepared—meeting the tests with shock, anger, tears, and anxiety. Administrators requested guidelines for handling tests students had vomited on. Teachers and principals complained about the disruptive nature of the testing process and many parents encouraged their children to opt out."

 

[FlightlessDuck]

In the US, the student's education should be structured to fit the students abilities through the IEP but the tests are standardized.

Depending on the state and/or district, not all students have a written IEP. But regardless, there is a teaching style called "differentiated instruction" where a teacher teaches the same concepts different ways in order to reach students differently (auditory, kinesthetic, visual, etc.).

 

[FlightlessDuck]

And the book states clearly on it that is Common Core Math. So this is the wave of the future with Common Core, even if states change it up slightly.

No, this isn't Common Core Standards. It's a curriculum your district decided to use. The standards don't have anything to do with it, regardless of the marketing by the company that made the book.

 

[cheer25mom]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/06/18/the-common-cores-fundamental-trouble/



"Nor are we exaggerating the potential for disaster. Consider this description from Charlotte Danielson, a highly regarded mainstream authority on teacher evaluation and a strong supporter of the Common Core:

I do worry somewhat about the assessments—I’m concerned that we may be headed for a train wreck there. The test items I’ve seen that have been released so far are extremely challenging. If I had to take a test that was entirely comprised of items like that, I’m not sure that I would pass it—and I’ve got a bunch of degrees. So I do worry that in some schools we’ll have 80 percent or some large number of students failing. That’s what I mean by train wreck.

Reports from the first wave of Common Core testing are already confirming these fears. This spring students, parents, and teachers in New York schools responded to administration of new Common Core tests developed by Pearson Inc. with a general outcry against their length, difficulty, and inappropriate content. Pearson included corporate logos and promotional material in reading passages. Students reported feeling overstressed and underprepared—meeting the tests with shock, anger, tears, and anxiety. Administrators requested guidelines for handling tests students had vomited on. Teachers and principals complained about the disruptive nature of the testing process and many parents encouraged their children to opt out."

Here, my friends, is the problem with common core. The kids cannot pass the tests! They are asking them to do things on these assessments that are developmentally inappropiate, and teachers are being forced to teach to the tests so they are teaching above the kids heads. The standards themselves are not the problem, but the methods being used to assess those standards. Frankly, they are unrealistic. Common core is demanding, through its assessment criteria, that students think on a level they are not developmentaly capable of. Our school is recongnizing this pretty quickly. They began using the assessments generated to match the common core end of year assessments and figured out pretty quickly that the students cant pass them They are now modifying them to suit what is developmentally appropiate, but that doesn't solve the problem of the end of year assessments that are basically asking the impossible.

 

[skater]

Through some unusual circumstances and a mistake on our part, my 10th grader (who has already had Algebra I twice and did well), is in Core Algebra I this year. He's struggling. The teacher doesn't know how to teach it - to the point that they brought someone in to help him. And my son says they're given worksheets with no explanation as to how to do it. This is an extremely frustrating situation. This is a straight A student who is worried about not getting an A in a class that he should be breezing through.

 

[cheer25mom]

No, this isn't Common Core Standards. It's a curriculum your district decided to use. The standards don't have anything to do with it, regardless of the marketing by the company that made the book.

But it is the type of curriculium they HAVE to use to have any hopes of having students pass the common core assessments.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Here, my friends, is the problem with common core. The kids cannot pass the tests! They are asking them to do things on these assessments that are developmentally inappropiate.

Provide an example.

 

[DawnM]

We all want the best for our kids and I will not allow my kids to bear the brunt of mistakes made by legislators.

I am not anti-public education. I worked in the system for 17 years. I now homeschool for a variety of reasons, but I am not and will not put their education in jeopardy just to fight for other kids somewhere down the line while mine flounder.

You can decide what is best for your child and I will decide what is best for mine.

I can "fight the system" in many other ways.

While I'm not slamming your decision to homeschool, the problem is that when people like you leave the system…well, the system wins. The Common Core will not end until parents scream at the legislators that approve this junk. Again, I'm not saying your should have kept your child in school. I just wish more parents were involved and would tell the govt. where to go and let teachers do what they know how to do.

 

[htmom]

Just reading about the testing for common core has me so happy I am done with school! My son is a great kid. He, at almost 12, has decided in ninth grade to attend the local tech school.
They have shop and classes in the same building, much of the classwork is directly related to their shop. I asked him why he wanted to go to the tech school, his response was pretty funny and was along the lines of, I am bad at tests at school, but I know how to work on cars and I am going to learn more. I will make lots of money because everyone else is going to college and I will make money from them because they won't know how to fix their cars.
Yeah a typical kid answer. But the point is, at his age he realizes tests are not the end all be all of education. Its sad that this country can't find a way to come to the realization that we are not all cookie cutter people.

At our back to school night the other night the math teacher told us how difficult is was to get the kids to understand the concepts that are on the tests. Its sad that a teacher has to teach things just because we are testing on them.

And yeah, I went on a tangent there, sorry. My point is this. I feel Common Core is going to be no different then No Child Left Behind in the end. We are still going to be teaching material only because it is on a test. I was at a board meeting where the members were looking over some of the recommended teaching materials, they all kind of sucked, it was like trying to pick out the one that sucked the least...

 

[LuLuO]

I definitely disagree. I don't think its realistic to expect that everyone is college bound and should be thinking and functioning at that level by the end of high school. I think we would be better served tracking students based on ability and interest into college, ready, trade ready, and basic skills paths. Common core assumes everyone is headed for higher education.

Regarding the testing that will begin to take place her in 2014 for CC, if I understand correctly, the assessment test are done entirely online. How many schools are set up to achieve this? Our district has broadband at every school, even so, they will have difficulty testing hundreds of students at the same time. One school is out in the boonies and their broadband is spotty at best. Also, there will not be enough computers for all of the kids to take the assessments at the same time. Where's the money going to come from to upgrade these systems? What about districts with even less resources?

Our district is very proud of their state assessment scores. They are high. They want to keep them high to maintain the district state ranking. Those scores are tied to our accreditation. I am still concerned about teaching to the test. Which is not a direct problem of CC but is something that will carry over even with the new standards.

The CC standards are not being implemented equally district to district so I don't understand what the point is. Won't the kids still be all over the board in terms of knowledge and skills?

Our governor said that many of our districts will lose accreditation when the test results come out in 2014. They've already identified at least two districts in our area that will likely be in that group due to lack of resources. Loss of accreditation in Missouri leads to a whole mess of other problems because of a stupid law and will likely result in those districts going bankrupt and dissolving. We already lost one district a few years back and two more probably won't be around next year.

Of course CC won't solve everything. I'm not even sure it will solve anything. But, I think that our public school system has bigger problems that need to be addressed before any change in standards or curriculum will be successful. Look at Philadelphia. What a horrible mess that is. They don't even have paper available for their kids or desks for everyone. Few or no counselors. Less teachers and huge class sizes. It's a sinking ship and they aren't the only ones.

I'm sorry I got a bit off topic but it really is all tied together.

 

[DopeyDame]

I'm not clear on why it's such a horribly bad thing for a large number of kids to fail the test or find it unusually challenging in the first year or two.

People (me included) feel that we need to raise the standards for our kids' education and expect more of them. So when something comes along that DOES expect more than we've asked of them in the past, of course the first time they see it they will struggle. No biggie. As they continue to be taught the more challenging material, they will learn it and do better on the assessments. I don't think a mark of a good educational policy should be how easy it is for kids to pass.

 

[barkley]

The roles rotate apparently. The teacher determines the groups.

And the book states clearly on it that is Common Core Math. So this is the wave of the future with Common Core, even if states change it up slightly.

it's interesting. I found the common core standards website and looked to how my state is implementing it. what I found really interesting, is in your state (hoping I looked correctly-florida?), they make a point of specifically saying on the department of education website that the standards "are not to be confused with curriculum or instruction", but it sounds like your school district is reworking their entire instructional methodology at the same time they are implementing the standards (let's just make the whole thing MUCH more complicated for both staff and students).

my state (Washington) is transitioning at this point, still using their state standards for testing, will do pilots for the common core standards for testing at the end of 2014, with full roll out of the c.c. standards testing in 2015 (who knows, by then it may have proven a disaster in other states such that it's dumped).


i'm not a big fan of standardized testing, but I do like the concept of having a clear statement of what the school's expectation is for each subject at each grade level. I never received this for dd (college freshman this year) unless an individual high school instructor provided a class syllabus (dd loved those-clear goals and expectations). with ds though I am provided with this information by virtue of his IEP. at the yearly planning meeting it's explained to me verbally (and given to me in writing) what the state criteria is for mastery of a subject at a specific grade level. we then go over where ds is on each individual subject so we can put his goals in place for the following school year. at minimum each quarter I get written updates on his progress and what methodology is being employed for evaluation.


this is a whole new world for me. from 1st through 8th grade my kids went to a one room school. while they were in an assigned grade it wasn't unusual for them to be working a grade level or two ahead in one subject (if they had mastered it) or a grade level below (unable to demonstrate mastery). seemed to work well for them, if for no other reason than when they were younger they overheard the teacher giving instruction to the older kids on what they would be learning/applying concepts to later (it helped allot with the "why do I have to learn this", it became "oh, I learn this now and apply it to this later"), and as older students they reheard the teacher instructing the younger kids in the basics-grammer, math rules...and it provided reinforcement.

 

[luvsJack]

Through some unusual circumstances and a mistake on our part, my 10th grader (who has already had Algebra I twice and did well), is in Core Algebra I this year. He's struggling. The teacher doesn't know how to teach it - to the point that they brought someone in to help him. And my son says they're given worksheets with no explanation as to how to do it. This is an extremely frustrating situation. This is a straight A student who is worried about not getting an A in a class that he should be breezing through.

Why on earth is he in Algebra I for the third time? Could you not have his schedule changed?


DD is in 10th also.

They are working in groups in Geometry, World History and World Lit. For the most part it is working great at their level.

In Geometry, dd is gaining a LOT of confidence as she is able to explain the concepts to the others in her group. And her bff, who is usually in her group, is catching on quickly in a subject area that tends to give her a lot of trouble.

In World History, its a bit harder. A lot of essay questions that is calling for critical thinking on their part and he says he is getting a lot of "deer in the headlights" looks from his students. But after the initial shock wears off and they are pushed a little to think, they are learning and thinking on their own. Its not that any of it is too hard, they just are not used to being made to think and come to conclusions on their own.

In all three of the classes, they are doing more projects, learning games and such that help them all learn and retain what they learned.

I don't know a whole lot about the core curriculum, but the teaching method of using the groups is working great. And I am not finding the core curriculum to be that far from where they already were in these areas.

 

[LuLuO]

I'm not clear on why it's such a horribly bad thing for a large number of kids to fail the test or find it unusually challenging in the first year or two.

People (me included) feel that we need to raise the standards for our kids' education and expect more of them. So when something comes along that DOES expect more than we've asked of them in the past, of course the first time they see it they will struggle. No biggie. As they continue to be taught the more challenging material, they will learn it and do better on the assessments. I don't think a mark of a good educational policy should be how easy it is for kids to pass.

Agreed. It should be okay for the kids to struggle and schools need to have the resources to lift up those who are struggling. Too many kids are graduating without basic skills but socioeconomic status of district residents has a huge impact on resources which will impact the implementation of any new set of standards.

When you live in a district or a state that places so much emphasis on test results, losing ground there has a huge impact on the districts. A lot of funding is directly tied to property taxes and property value goes down when district performance goes down. There are more factors at play here than just CC.

 

[htmom]

I'm not clear on why it's such a horribly bad thing for a large number of kids to fail the test or find it unusually challenging in the first year or two.

People (me included) feel that we need to raise the standards for our kids' education and expect more of them. So when something comes along that DOES expect more than we've asked of them in the past, of course the first time they see it they will struggle. No biggie. As they continue to be taught the more challenging material, they will learn it and do better on the assessments. I don't think a mark of a good educational policy should be how easy it is for kids to pass.

The issue I see though is they have to teach it first. I know in my sons school very little teaching is happening because the foundations of early math are not there anymore and the curriculum keeps changing. My best friend is a fifth grade teacher and laughed because she said at their class on the new curriculum for math this year the instructor didn't know how to do some of the problems the "right" way and made the comment, "I am sure you can figure it out"

 

[daughtersrus]

Depending on the state and/or district, not all students have a written IEP. But regardless, there is a teaching style called "differentiated instruction" where a teacher teaches the same concepts different ways in order to reach students differently (auditory, kinesthetic, visual, etc.).

My mistake. I assumed that all states/districts had a written IEP. How are the needs of the student documented if there isn't one? Is the only measure of progress test scores since they don't have written goals to update?

 

[Dizneefamily+4]

dh is a high school math teacher and department chair- their dept consistently scores in the top 3 in the state for math. Our district has also adopted the common core standards for math and is implementing them this year. DO NOT get him started on how horrible it is. He fought it tooth and nail to no avail.

Our elementary schools (same district) have also rolled out the common core math standards. The teachers HATE it and my dd8, a 3rd grader who's very good at math and has always enjoyed it, is so lost and confused. The jury is still out for DS12 (7th grader.) It's too early yet to tell how he'll handle it.

Long story short, these standards are an epic fail. Time will tell on test scores....

 

[Hyonlyf]

I should have been more specific, this lesson was GCF and LCM. The concept was in no way above her head, and she was taught number families in 2nd grade. She graps multiplication, division and how they relate, and how to find number families, but they have made a huge jump in the difficultly level and have not done GCF or LCM before. The LESSON was above thier heads in the way it tackled teaching them to find greatest common factor. It was a lot of number theory, concepts we discussed in discrete math in college, and NO concerte examples of what they were supoesd to be doing, and this is how common core wants it taught. I just don't think that it is going to get the concept across. It was not simple numbers like 78 or 200. We are talking problems like:
Find all factors of 543

or

What is the greatest common factor if 425 and 510.
they weren't shown how to do this. They discussed the theory behind it and how to estimate what the factors MIGHT be, but never how to find them or what greatest common factor or least common multiple even mean. The were meant to make that jump on thier own based on the lesson.

Our school system has always covered the first year of college calculus by the end of high school, and have AP and IB exam scores well ahead of the national average. It is not that they were not teaching the concepts or were behind. It is the WAY this stuff is being presented that is causing the problem. There is NO practice in class on any concepts, only at home. Class has become all abstract theory, no implementation, but they are required to implement the concept on homework and tests with no guidance.

Is my son in your daughter's class LOL? We had same exact lesson here 2 weeks ago.