From: http://www.angelaengel.com/latest-news/128-the-data-to-prove-it

“Corporate Reform and high-stakes testing was sold on two premises: “We need to close the achievement gap and better prepare students for college.” A decade and a half later the facts are in: the number of at-risk students and college remediation rates has DOUBLED! It has never been about kids, it has always been about making more MONEY.
Risking Students, Raising Test Scores:

In 2000 163,052 children were identified as at-risk
In 2013 305,261 children are identified as at-risk

There was a 55% increase in the proportion of at-risk students in the student population.”

I received several copies of an email today that Superintendent Bergeson of the Washington county school district sent to parents of the Dixie middle school. I believe this same superintendent was on air running radio ads during the legislative session announcing that all teachers love Common Core (which is what inspired our teacher ad which we ran in the St. George area). I was asked to reply to this letter and I decided to do it online so that parents can more easily share this post with their neighbors through Facebook and email.

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Dear Parents of Dixie Middle School Students,

There are some misunderstandings regarding the Utah State Board of Education’s Core Standards (Utah Core Standards). Although similar, our Utah Core Standards differ from the Common Core State Standards that were initially adopted by 44 states. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) have served as a political platform for some, including popular media, to create confusion, uncertainty, and in some extreme cases, fear. As such, I felt it necessary to clarify a few of the misconceptions that are being circulated.

Sup. Bergeson is completely right. There are some misunderstandings about Utah’s Core Standards. The misunderstanding is completely his. Superintendent Menlove has already clarified publicly that the Utah Core IS COMMON CORE. Now to be completely clear, the Utah Core covers all subjects while we have only adopted Common Core math and ELA. Common Core has never served as a political platform for anyone except President Obama who has announced the idea was his and we should all be grateful for it.

1. The State of Utah has complete control of Utah’s learning standards in all areas of our public education curriculum. In a letter to former State Superintendent Larry Shumway and Governor Gary Herbert, United States Secretary of Education Arne Duncan reaffirmed that the State of Utah has “…complete control of Utah’s learning standards in all areas of our public education curriculum.” Secretary Duncan went on to further affirm this as he concluded that, “States have the sole right to set learning standards.” (March 7, 2012) Once again, we reaffirm that Utah has not adopted the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) but has retained it’s right to establish the Utah Core Standards.

In a court of law, which trumps which Superintendent? A memorandum of understanding that Utah filed with the feds as part of our official waiver from No Child Left Behind (which a court might term a “contract”) which says Utah agrees to “fully adopt Common Core as written” and “only add up to 15%” to the standards, or a non-contractual letter from Arne Duncan? Hint: contracts have supremacy over non-contractual documents. Further, if the feds fund the assessments and tie student performance to the tests, and 45 states have signed on, how easy can we change the test? Do you honestly think that Utah or any state on Common Core, would change the standards when the TESTS ARE BASED ON THOSE EXACT STANDARDS? The feds control us at this point. They know we’re not going to change the standards because then we’d lose that transferability of students between states that everyone touts as one of the several awesome benefits of Common Core. Once again, I reaffirm that you should read Superintendent Menlove’s comments linked to above that clearly state Utah has adopted Common Core as the “Utah Core.”

2. The Utah State Board of Education adopts the standards but school districts, including schools, teams, and teachers, select the curriculum best suited to meet that standard. We understand the complexity of identifying the most suitable curriculum, resources, and text to meet our Utah State Standards. Teacher time is at a premium. Because of this, a great deal of time and energy is spent at the district level researching, receiving teacher input, and forming focus groups to vet the myriad of available programs and resources in order to identify those that best meet our needs in the Washington County School District.

If a state adopted standards and there are no textbooks available except through a few vendors who just by chance happened to be part of the creation of Common Core’s standards, does that really mean local schools had a choice in curriculum selection? Common Core is a corporate boondoggle. Pearson, McGraw-Hill, and a few others stood to make billions putting smaller companies out of business. They should be prosecuted for insider trading. Now I don’t know what extraordinary measures you went to in Washington County SD to determine the best programs from the myriad of available options, but I can’t imagine the choice was quite as difficult as you make out since I know in other areas of the state the choices were not very plentiful. That’s one of the reasons the state office of education decided to put together their own ad hoc math curriculum written by 5 constructivist math teachers which starts off with an exercise in group think and gets worse from there.

3. The Utah Core Standards do not lower academic expectations. The standards raise the bar in Language Arts and Math, making sure ALL Utah students are prepared to compete in an ever changing global economy. Utah State Senator Howard Stephenson affirmed,  “ I am convinced the Utah Core Standards in math and language arts are right for Utah students. These standards will better prepare our students for college and to be competitive in the global economy. These standards are in harmony with Utah values.” (April 2012).  There is a growing majority of teachers who acknowledge that the increase in rigor, relevancy, application and collaborative problem solving required of students, as a result of the new Utah Core Standards, is helping with critical thinking skills and better preparing them for post-secondary endeavors.

By “do not lower academic expectations” do you mean that Common Core elevates math by pushing completion of algebra 1 into 9th grade under Common Core instead of 8th grade where is used to be? Dr. David Wright, math professor at BYU, has written an enlightening op-ed you may wish to refer to about the horrid implementation of Common Core math in Utah. I think you should ask Senator Stephenson where he stands now on Common Core and not from 2 years ago. Back then, Utah barely knew what had hit her. Now that teachers and legislators and the public have seen more of Common Core, they are growing more horrified at the sheer stupidity of math assignments, the compounding confusion of constructivism, and the abandonment of common sense when educrats were so against No Child Left Behind but have embraced Common Core which is NCLB on steroids.

4. Our commitment to the professional learning community (PLC) process provides us our best chance to meet the varied needs of our students and the standards which are established. This, above all else, is why we are passionately committed to the PLC process. Programs change, curricula changes, even our assessment systems change. These changes have become part of our current educational climate. What has not changed is the need for schools to function as true PLCs and for teachers to work in highly effective teams. Because of this, it becomes more critical than ever that we focus on working in highly effective teams that:

If I didn’t think it was sacrilegious, I would type out a prayer right here to give me strength. Do you not see how Common Core does NOT EVEN BEGIN TO MEET VARIED NEEDS?!?! There is a lawsuit in Alpine school district right now based on this very issue. The whole purpose of Common Core was to STANDARDIZE CHILDREN. Bill Gates came along and saw inefficiencies in the computer world and said, “if we just had a single great platform where everything worked the same, it would introduce super efficiencies to the business world.” Lo and behold, Bill signed an agreement with UNESCO in 2004 to create a global education system and standardize children on a single platform which came to be known as Common Core. Under Common Core we are treating all children like identical factory parts that just need the same nuts and bolts strapped on them in order to turn out perfect little products. Common Core isn’t meant to improve critical thinking, it’s meant to drive differences and diversity right out of the human spirit.

1. identify those things that every student NEEDS to know,

Do you really think Common Core specifies what “every student NEEDS to know?” Does Common Core contain standards on how to open a checking account? How to balance a budget? Common Core is a very small subset of things that a very small group of people deemed students should know by a certain grade level, without doing any research and without pilot testing the standards for appropriateness. Further, the standards were never benchmarked internationally as has been stated.

2.develops and frequently give common formative assessments,

How often do you think children need formative assessments? We are stressing kids out already. Isn’t learning supposed to be joyful to teach children to love learning? Why do we keep having behavioral problems in schools? Why can’t schools interest those students? Hmmm…. Something to ponder.

3. effectively uses data from these assessments to collaboratively identify which students need extra assistance and those who are prepared for extensions, and

4. provide immediate and specific intervention focused on the lacking skill or concept.

This is one of the few things in your letter I agree might be one of the outcomes. By testing and trying to identify the specific areas of weakness, you can tell where a child has problems. Of course if you didn’t do testing and let teachers create a positive environment, students could feel comfortable asking questions and getting answers and I’m guessing teachers could still figure out where a child was weak in a skill.

Please understand that we are learning together. Our school board, district office staff, schools and teacher teams are committed to fully embedding the PLC process. This IS what will drive learning in our schools and provide us with our best chance of ensuring that each and every student in the Washington County School District learn at high levels.

No, this is what will drive SCHOOLING, not learning. Becoming educated and schooled are two different things. Common Core and the compulsory education model are designed to school children. Make them obedient to authority, put them on a schedule, and drive the love of learning from them. You’re not ensuring students learn at high levels. Common Core doesn’t even reach high levels. In high achieving countries they are 2 years ahead of Common Core by 8th grade.

For further information and resources regarding our Utah Core Standards, please visit washk12.org and click on the “Utah State Board of Education Core Standards” icon.

Superintendent Larry Bergeson

To you parents in Washington County School District, please read all the references I’ve linked to. Do your own homework, and watch the new Common Core movie to hear what the content and validation committee experts have to say about Common Core, and why you should oppose Common Core to protect your children and ensure they become educated.

Want to see where your candidates for office are? Look here. We don’t have a ton of results yet from around the state, but we do have quite a few.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0An7_5IjcOBbydFYwMDZXcXhyaUljSmxLRllVdUZJZEE&usp=sharing

If you don’t see your candidates’ responses, please ask them to immediately take the survey here:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Yr9e4T-E5Z8aDIi67KZRyUHQdeY4m0bq_fwLJIcjHEs/viewform

Stuart Harper, physics teacher in St. George, previously wrote an article that was published on this site. Through his own research he had concerns and dared to voice them in a system that doesn’t like unique thought and demands conformity. I can’t tell you how many teachers I’ve received emails from expressing support for our movement and concern that they can’t speak out or risk losing their job. When a teacher tells me their entire department has issues with Common Core, the education system responds calling us liars for saying such a thing. The USOE is heavily and understandably invested in the success of Common Core. They made a major decision to take the entire state of Utah into a path of pilot testing standards that had never been used and had no textbooks written for them. Something so risky based solely on a decision that it COULD POTENTIALLY result in the receipt of federal dollars, should result in the firings of the officers that pushed to adopt the standards before they were written and without any public meetings. These people are still in positions of power at the USOE, and tragically, continue to push for something which is designed to teach our children what to think, not how to think, the same way they demand teachers are treated. Here is Stuart Harpers email and resignation letter. Please pray for Stuart and our teachers who are unable to speak out, being swallowed up in an education beast that consumes 65% of our state budget.

“As rumor of my story has been circulating and has made it back to me in fragmented forms, I want to publicly give my version of the story. My goal is not to paint myself as a victim nor is it to demonize anyone who has been involved in threatening me. Rather, I hope to remind citizens that we have a duty to be informed and involved in the education of the rising generation. I hope to raise awareness of the corruption that is within our school system and how it trickles down to each level through intimidation. I also hope to encourage others to ask questions, fight for local control and stand up for what is truly best for our students and local communities.”

Stuart Harper

Resignation Letter

“January 25, 2014

Be it known that at the conclusion of my contract this year I will resign my post as a public school teacher. I do not do this lightly, but with a heavy heart and with much sorrow. I am leaving an ideal position at a wonderful school, teaching the subject I love. My reasons for leaving and the situation I find myself in are most unfortunate, but I think it beneficial for others to learn of events which have lead to my decision. Understand that I hold no ill will toward any individuals involved. I realize they are merely victims of a corrupt system.

As a citizen I have a responsibility to be involved in civic affairs. As a teacher and father I have an added interest in educational affairs and have a duty to support what I believe is truly best for the parents and students of my community.

After much research I know that the Common Core (CC), the way it has been implemented, and the reforms which have accompanied it are wrong. They are unsound, of poor quality, take power from local government, and further empower federal agencies and policy makers. Most importantly, their enactment was unconstitutional, both in Utah and in the nation. However wrong CC may be, my reasons for resigning are only tangent to this constitutional breech. I was aware of the core before signing on, and though I did not approve of it I gave my word in contract to teach whatever curriculum I was given.

In the summer of 2013 a personal letter I had written stating my concerns with CC was posted on the Utahns Against Common Core website. It was an opinion piece, not a scholarly review. I saw no problem with stating my opinion, it is my right as a citizen, at least so I thought.

A few months later, I was informed that the Utah State Office of Education (USOE) had learned of my published letter and was not happy with my opinions or concerns. Local school authorities were instructed to meet with me and put me back in line. During this meeting with the district representatives I was told that I was shallow, ignorant and emotional in the way I wrote my concerns and that by writing things like this I would create rebellion and insubordination across the district. I was told I can have an opinion with other state’s educational systems but as a teacher in the state of Utah I cannot be concerned with my own state’s educational affairs. I reminded them that my intent was not to promote rebellion, but to simply encourage personal research on the subject and exercise freedom of speech on my off time, as a citizen and father. I was told “Those freedom of speech rights you are probably referring to do not apply.”

I was shocked, but I stood my ground. I made it clear that if I continued to be intimidated into silence that I would resign same day. I told them that I have given my word to teach what they want me to in the classroom and would continue, but I would also continue to use my rights as an American citizen to effect political change. They said I could share my research if I get my facts straight, but even then my job is on the line. When I told them that I would continue to research information from original sources as well as writings from those for and against CC they were confused. They discouraged me from seeking information from anywhere other than the USOE, and accept only their interpretations of the facts. I refused, reminding them that true education comes from educating yourself on all sides.

I was threatened on three separate occasions with professional action all because I stated my opinion. I did not resign at any of the instances where I found myself threatened because I realized that I had given my word that I would teach for the year, and I will not break my word.  However I refuse to remain in an environment that clearly has no respect for the Constitutional right of free speech. I refuse to be a part of the problem.

Over the years the school system has fallen far below what it should be. The public school system is just that – public. It should represent those served by it – We the People. Each level of the system (classroom, school, district and state) fails to remember that its duty is to the people, not to the establishment. We should be representing what is in our students’ and our community’s best interest. Our current system expects acceptance and conformity to its decisions and policies by all of its teachers and administrators. Further, it expects this without questioning or voicing concerns and even goes as far as intimidating and threatening those who have differing opinions. Any society or organization that silences and discourages freedom of speech removes the possibility to express ideas, and without competing ideas we close the door on true education and open the door to tyranny.

The public education system is filled with hundreds upon thousands of good people who want to make a difference, but they are all confined by the way this system has been engineered. There now exists a growing centralized system which extends its control into every classroom and robs each teacher of their freedom. In direct opposition to this centralized overreach, I believe schools should make most decisions on a very local level. Domestic tranquility is ensured by taking care of things in our homes and communities and by having parents, teachers and students work together to create the best situation. We have lost control of the classroom and continue to hand more and more power over to the government. Our current system no longer promotes learning, but rather focuses on training. It teaches what to think, not how to think. It is now a system of hoops for students, teachers, and administrators, and with further national control and regulations of education, these hoops have been set on fire.

I believe that until we can get education to become self-sufficient where it no longer relies on the funding and intimidation from federal and even state levels, until we can bring education back to learning how to think and not being trained for a test, and until we can bring freedom back to the individual teachers, students, and schools, our public system will continue to decay. I hope the system and its people can exercise the self discipline to do this, but where I cannot foresee this happening, my greatest hope for education now resides in home-schools, home-school groups, and in private education.

My hands are tied within this system. But I now know that I can be more productive on the outside. I will continue to promote true and correct educational principles, awareness of civic affairs, and our duty to be involved. I am going to be a part of the solution. Asking questions is the essence of education. All I encourage of others is to ask questions, seek truth and not be afraid to share that truth with other Americans who are willing to listen.

Sincerely,

Mr. Stuart Harper

Teacher, Citizen, and Father”