The Common Core

Because I'm a teacher, people ask me all the time about The Common Core. What is it? What's it all about? Why is it so controversial? Am I for it or against it? Well, for starters, The Common Core is a national education initiative to standardize what students in all 50 states are taught. On the surface, that sounds like a good idea. The problem is WHAT is being taught and HOW it is being taught. In some cases the material is propaganda. In other cases the method of teaching is just plain silly. Look at the math problem below. This is an example of The Common Core. If you are shaking your head... I don't blame you. When we went to school, 8+5=13. Sally has 8 apples and Joe has 5 apples. How many apples do they have all together? 13. 8+5=13. Where in the world and why in the world do we want these kids to say 8+5=10. It doesn't. It never will. Any student who enters the work force and tells his boss that he took in $8 and then $5 for a total of $10, that person won't be working for very long. He or she would be fired. We need to get back to basics and The Common Core is NOT the way to do it. Many kids today cannot do math to save their lives. Let's face it. Math is hard enough when 8+5=13. When 8+5=10... forget about it!