Feb. 10, 2014 12:46pm by Fred
Lucas
Facing critics from both the left
and the right, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo named a panel to try to fix the
implementation of Common Core in the state.
Cuomo’s action comes after New York
State United Teachers, the largest teachers union for the Empire State, joined
the chorus of critics and called for a moratorium on the standards, saying
there is too great a focus on testing.
New York is one of 45 states that
has adopted the K-12 standards for math and English developed by the
National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers.
Common Core is touted by the Obama administration and national teacher unions
as a way to prepare kids for the future, while critics say it is tantamount to
national standards because the U.S. Department of Education incentivize states
to adopt the standards to get federal dollars.
Last week, nine Republican senators introduced a resolution
to prevent the Department of Education from making adoption of Common Core
standards a requirement to receive federal school grants. But the bulk of
opposition has come from Republicans in red states.
New York is among the bluest of
Democratic-leaning states in the country. Yet, Cuomo – a Democrat and supporter
of the standards – is being pushed to consider changes.
“The Common Core standards are a
critical part of transforming New York’s schools, and the failure to
effectively implement them has led to confusion and frustration among students
and their families,” Cuomo said in a statement. “I urge
the members of this panel to work speedily in bringing forward a set of
actionable recommendations to improve the implementation of the Common Core.”
The 11-member Common Core panel
includes national experts, New York state legislators, parents, educators,
business and nonprofit leaders, according to the governor’s office.
The panel could have benefited from
more teacher and parent representation, said Richard
Iannuzzi, president of the New York State United Teachers, who added that
the panel must “work swiftly to respond to parents, teachers and school leaders
who are committed to high standards and accountability but are frustrated and
angry.”
“The state’s over-reliance on
standardized testing and data — and rush to test students before teachers had a
chance to deliver instruction, and before all the appropriate curriculum
materials were provided — undermines whatever potential new standards may have
to improve student achievement,” Iannuzzi said.
“A moratorium on the high-stakes
consequences for students and teachers from standardized testing will provide
time needed for the board of regents, state Education Department and school
districts to make the necessary course corrections and provide additional support
to students and educators to get us back to teaching and learning, and not
testing and more testing.”
Republican state Assemblyman Al Graf
has reportedly been the leading opponent in the legislature against Common Core
standards. He submitted a bill to withdraw the state from both Common Core and
the Race to the Top federal grant program, Capitol New York reported.
Meanwhile, even a Democratic
supporter of Common Core, state Sen. David Valesky told the Syracuse Post-Standard
he supports blocking the standards.
“While I support the Common Core standards, I
believe the rollout of those standards has been seriously flawed,” Valesky
said. “As such, I support the call from legislative leaders in both houses to
consider a moratorium on the use of testing results until the process can be
improved.”
Source: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/02/10/surprising-liberal-governor-is-taking-another-look-at-common-core/
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