Be sure to read the comments at the bottom of this article from teachers. Teachers have been afraid for their jobs. I spoke with one yesterday in Southern Utah who said almost all the teachers in his school don’t like Common Core but they are nervous about saying anything that could put their job in jeopardy. Lets hope the NEA finally wake up a bit.
Here’s one teacher’s story from the comments:
Moby Jones says: “I am beginning to hate my job. I hear in my district, “implement the Math Common Core this year. No, we cannot afford any new materials or texts. We want you to struggle through this process and create your own so you can become expertly familiar with the new standards. Oh, and yes, your value add score might show you are a ‘least effective teacher’ and next year your salary will be tied with your value add score. You are now under the guise of the PARCC Consortium and next year your kids will be taking the PARCC tests. This year, on top of state assessments, you also must have your kids take MAP tests 3 times per year, a Measure of Academic Progress. Heavens, no, you don’t know what the test items are! But we’ll send you your kids’ scores to see how well you’re all doing”. As I said, I’m beginning to hate my job. We are told we must do anything and everything to get our kids to pass these tests, especially those “subgroups” that notoriously don’t pass. We must do anything and everything; we change things mid-year and try something new. We shift on a whim. Why aren’t you growing these kids? Their projected scores say they should be at this number, but they’re not. I am not very effective. After almost 30 years, I am beginning to hate my job.”
Alpine School District Board member Brian Halladay was one of 3 winners of our essay contest. Here is his essay:
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Imagine for a moment that you and your spouse recently returned from date night to find that your home had been robbed.
Among other things, two items were stolen: your journals and your social security numbers. They were then given to a group of well renowned psychologists, behavioral scientists, then the military. After being analyzed and copied, they were then given back to you.
A week after the items were returned, the police knock on your door. They found the identity of the robber….your babysitter. The very person you trusted to watch your children.
Wouldn’t you consider this a violation of privacy? Wouldn’t the theft of your journal be considered a crime? Yet, this is eerily similar to what our State School Board is allowing to happen in our schools. We have trusted them to protect our children while in school, and they have breached that trust.
Almost every student in the state of Utah will be taking the SAGE test in the next few months.
This test is designed by the American Institutes for Research (AIR), one of the world’s largest social and behavioral research centers. The data is being collected by AIR, with no guarantee of privacy then downloaded on the servers at the Utah State Office of Education.
To assume that our children’s data will be protected, when there is no guarantee of protection in their contract is like assuming that the NSA isn’t collecting your phone calls. It’s just not true.
We can’t allow this violation of our children’s private data. It’s up to us to protect the privacy of our children. As a parent, there is only one way to prevent this. Opt out of the SAGE test. Tell your principal and teacher this week. Write the governor and state school board. We can make a difference. It’s time.
This letter was sent to Dr. Menlove on 2/17/2014. His reply is below along with my reply. Don’t ever let someone tell you that the Utah core differs from Common Core. Math and ELA standards are Common Core. Dr. Menlove acknowledges this below.
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Dr. Menlove,
I received an interesting email today. Evidently someone was at the capitol last week and heard you state in a meeting several times that the Utah Core has nothing to do with the national Common Core. Is this correct? I am sure this person misheard what you said because I can’t imagine why on earth would you ever state something like that? I am well aware that Utah adopted Common Core and then renamed it Utah core to try and deflect criticism, but I don’t know how openly USOE officials are disavowing any relation to CCSS. The only difference in the standards that I am aware of is that after 8 months of pressing the USOE and state board to restore cursive writing into the standards, they were added as part of the 15% additional standards we are allowed to have. Can you please explain what else makes the Utah core different from the national Common Core or is the ESEA Flexibility Waiver that Utah filed with the Feds inaccurate in the statements the USOE represented to the Federal department? I tend to put a lot more weight in source documents than I do in verbal assurances and I just want to make sure we are on the same page. I will gladly post your response online so everyone is clear on how the USOE views Utah’s Common Core adoption.
CCSS=Common Core State Standards for any who might not know the acronym.
What I see in the ESEA Flexibility Waiver to get Utah out from No Child Left Behind are the following items (and after jotting these down I quit because there were so many references to CCSS and I’m short on time tonight):
Pg. 21, “The USBE adopted the CCSS in June 2010 along with a statewide implementation timeline. Letters were sent to school district superintendents and charter directors regarding the adoption and timeline; making it clear that all LEAs would be expected to adopt the standards within the given timeline.”
Pg. 22, “Implementation efforts after the USBE adoption in 2010 were focused on communication and gathering stakeholder input. A website (http://www.schools.utah.gov/core/) was assembled providing information for parents and educators to assist in understanding the new CCSS. The following activities were the focus of our first year efforts.
• Communicate reasons for adopting CCSS to stakeholders
• Gather stakeholder input about CCSS adoption and implementation plans
…
Pg. 23 “The English language arts crosswalks follow the pattern of showing where the new standard is found in the current core and then reverses this process; showing the current standard in the new core.” (Oak note: this seems to very clearly be stating that the Utah core was being replaced by the new CCSS)
Pg. 30, “An important development is the onslaught of requests from various states, including Race to the Top states, to help them craft professional development in their states to better implement the Common Core Standards.”
Pg. 34, “Promises to Keep includes the 4th Promise: Requiring effective assessment to inform high quality instruction and accountability. With that promise in mind, Utah’s current assessment system is being adjusted to support Utah teachers as they begin the instructional transition to the CCSS prior to the administration of a fully aligned assessment system. Pilot items will be included on the summative assessment aligned to the common core and the results made available to schools but not counted in scoring.”… “In addition, Utah’s online formative assessment system’s item bank has been aligned to the common core and new common core items are being written.”
Pg. 87 is from the August 10, 2010 State Board Meeting minutes and contains this paragraph.
Pg. 91 from the same board minutes:
Pg. 127, “B. The Board shall use the Effective Teaching Standards and Educational Leadership Standards to direct and ensure the implementation of the Utah Common Core Standards.”
So again, can you please once and for all verify for everyone that Utah is in fact using the Common Core State Standards developed through the non-governmental private organizations, NGA and CCSSO? Will you please make sure your people are well aware of this?
Sincerely,
Oak Norton
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Mr. Norton,
The Utah State Board of Education adopted the Common Core State Standards as Utah Core Standards in Math and English/Language Arts. I do not believe I have said anything contrary to this. If I have, I apologize.
Thanks for seeking this clarification.
As noted previously, I continue to be willing to meet with you at your convenience to hear your concerns.
Sincerely,
Martell Menlove
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Thank you for acknowledging this. Either you or some of the individuals in the USOE seem to be contradicting this, perhaps inadvertently, and declaring to legislators and the public that the Utah core is somehow different from the Common Core State Standards. I appreciate you acknowledging they are the same.
Oak
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The Utah Core Standards and the Common Core State Standards are not the same. The Utah Core Standards are much broader and contain standards for subjects other than Math and English/Language Arts. Additionally, as you have noted, we have added cursive writing to the Utah Core Standards.
Martell
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Right, the total Utah core includes subjects beyond Common Core because we haven’t adopted Common Core for those subjects, but for math and ELA which we have adopted, they are identical aside from us adding cursive to the standards.
Oak
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One thing I think there is also some confusion on is that apparently, you or others have represented that we are not bound to the Common Core standards we’ve adopted. Clearly our ESEA waiver application to free us from NCLB states that we are. We agreed in the document that we “agree to accept all of the standards as they are written” and we will use it as our framework and only add up to 15% more. Do you disagree with what we sent the feds in this application?
Oak
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I am not sure where you find these statement in our ESEA waiver application. I do not believe they are included in the sections of the waiver that you noted in your email. Can you point to me where they are found?
What I do find in the ESEA waiver on page 21 is a statement by Supt. Shumway and contained in a letter dated Mach 5, 2012 in which Supt Shumway stated, “On behalf of the Board, I assert its right to complete control of Utah’s learning standards in all areas of our public education curriculum.” Also on page 21 of the EASE waiver is reference to a letter dated March 16, 2012 from Secretary of Education Arne Duncan stating that “states, not the federal government, have the sole right to set learning standards.”
Martell
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Sorry, I should have included a link for you. This is the ESEA waiver we filed, correct? The page numbers and statements below are all related to this document (clicking the link will load a pdf file).
As for Sup. Shumway’s letter, that holds no legal weight. Declaring a belief in the face of a contract is meaningless.
Arne Duncan’s statement is correct. We have every right as a state to set standards. However, we set them in concrete through the contracts we have entered into.
I don’t know why it took the NY Times so long to realize this. The World Socialists are clearly on the left and their organization came out last year against Common Core. Better late than never I guess.
“The Common Core has been applauded by education leaders and promoted by the Obama administration as a way to replace a hodgepodge of state standards with one set of rigorous learning goals. Though 45 states and the District of Columbia have signed on to them since 2010, resistance came quickly, mostly from right-leaning states, where some leaders and political action groups have protested what they see as a federal takeover of local classrooms.
But the newest chorus of complaints is coming from one of the most liberal states, and one of the earliest champions of the standards: New York. And that is causing supporters of the Common Core to shudder.
Carol Burris, an acclaimed high school principal on Long Island, calls the Common Core a “disaster.”
“We see kids,” she said, “they don’t want to go to school anymore.”
This is the bill to watch this session. Thank you Rep. Layton for putting forth a bill to create independence for Utah and help preserve local control of education.
H.B. 342
1
POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE STATE BOARD OF
2
EDUCATION
3
2014 GENERAL SESSION
4
Rep. Dana Layton
STATE OF UTAH 5
Chief Sponsor: Dana L. Layton
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Senate Sponsor: ____________
7 8 LONG TITLE 9 General Description: 10 This bill modifies the powers and duties of the State Board of Education regarding the 11 development and adoption of core curriculum standards. 12 Highlighted Provisions: 13 This bill: 14 . specifies procedures for the development and adoption of core curriculum standards 15 for English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies, including: 16 . the establishment of a standards development committee consisting of parents, 17 teachers, and representatives of school districts, business, and higher education 18 to assist the board in developing standards; and 19 . public review and comment of draft core curriculum standards; 20 . requires the State Board of Education to establish a standards review committee 21 consisting of 15 parents of Utah public education students to review proposed core 22 curriculum standards for English language arts, mathematics, science, and social 23 studies; 24 . requires the State Board of Education to maintain control of, and the power to 25 modify, core curriculum standards for English language arts, mathematics, science, 26 and social studies; and 27 . requires the State Board of Education, on or before July 1, 2016, to adopt revised
28 core curriculum standards for English language arts and mathematics that are developed 29 specifically for Utah. 30 Money Appropriated in this Bill: 31 None 32 Other Special Clauses: 33 None 34 Utah Code Sections Affected: 35 ENACTS: 36 53A-1-402.8 , Utah Code Annotated 1953 37 38 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah: 39 Section 1. Section 53A-1-402.8 is enacted to read: 40 53A-1-402.8. Core curriculum standards for English language arts, mathematics, 41 science, and social studies. 42 (1) As used in this section, “board” means the State Board of Education. 43 (2) The board shall develop and adopt core curriculum standards for English language 44 arts, mathematics, science, and social studies in accordance with Section 53A-1-402.6 and this 45 section. 46 (3) The board shall develop and adopt core curriculum standards for English language 47 arts, mathematics, and science that are aligned with the standards of states and nations whose 48 students are among the most proficient on national and international achievement tests. 49 (4) (a) The board may adopt an academic standard of another state or nation if the 50 board determines that the standard is aligned with the basic knowledge, skills, and 51 competencies a student is expected to acquire or master as the student advances through the 52 public education system. 53 (b) Notwithstanding Subsection (4)(a), the board may not adopt, in whole, a set of 54 standards for English language arts, mathematics, science, or social studies developed for a 55 group of states or the nation as Utah’s core curriculum standards. 56 (5) The board shall maintain control of, and the power to modify, core curriculum 57 standards for English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. 58 (6) (a) The board shall establish a standards development committee to assist the board
59 in developing core curriculum standards for English language arts, mathematics, science, and 60 social studies. 61 (b) The board shall appoint to a standards development committee established under 62 Subsection (6)(a) individuals with expertise in the subject for which standards are being 63 developed, including parents, teachers, school leaders, school district representatives, business 64 representatives, and faculty of higher education institutions in Utah. 65 (c) A standards development committee established under Subsection (6)(a) shall: 66 (i) hold meetings that are open to the public; 67 (ii) receive public comment; and 68 (iii) submit recommendations on core curriculum standards for adoption by the board. 69 (7) (a) The board shall establish a standards review committee consisting of 15 parents 70 of Utah public education students to review proposed core curriculum standards for English 71 language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. 72 (b) The membership of the standards review committee includes: 73 (i) five parents appointed by the board chair; 74 (ii) five parents appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives; and 75 (iii) five parents appointed by the president of the Senate. 76 (c) The board shall provide staff support to the standards review committee. 77 (d) Except as provided in Subsection (7)(e), the term of office of each member 78 appointed to the standards review committee is four years. 79 (e) The board chair, the speaker of the House of Representatives, and the president of 80 the Senate shall adjust the length of terms to stagger the terms of standards review committee 81 members so that approximately one-half of the committee members are appointed every two 82 years. 83 (f) No member of the standards review committee may receive compensation or 84 benefits for the member’s service on the committee. 85 (g) The standards review committee shall submit comments and recommendations to 86 the board on proposed core curriculum standards for English language arts, mathematics, 87 science, and social studies. 88 (8) Before adopting core curriculum standards for English language arts, mathematics, 89 science, and social studies, the board shall:
90 (a) publicize draft core curriculum standards on the State Board of Education’s website 91 and the Utah Public Notice website created under Section 63F-1-701 ; 92 (b) invite public comment on the draft core curriculum standards for a period of not 93 less than 90 days; and 94 (c) conduct three public hearings that are held in different regions of the state on the 95 draft core curriculum standards. 96 (9) Taking into consideration the public comment and the comments and 97 recommendations of the standards review committee, the board may: 98 (a) adopt draft core curriculum standards for English language arts, mathematics, 99 science, and social studies as final standards; or 100 (b) modify draft core curriculum standards for English language arts, mathematics, 101 science, and social studies and adopt the modified standards as final standards. 102 (10) On or before July 1, 2016, the board shall adopt revised core curriculum standards 103 for English language arts and mathematics that are developed specifically for Utah.
Terrance Moore recently gave this presentation at Hillsdale College exposing how Common Core works in practice when you have limited publishers who create curriculum for the standards.
It’s starting to look like New York, that bastion of right-wing extremists, err…, may be the first state to throw off Common Core. Having fully embraced it in all it’s glory, they’ve now seen first hand the damage it can cause to children. Here’s some clips.
Now, after listening to an outraged public in a series of 11 forums held across New York, state lawmakers are getting ready to file a bill that would slam the brakes on the scheme. In a phone interview with The New American, New York State Assemblyman Al Graf, a member of the Assembly Education Committee, explained that the coalition of legislators had no choice but to take action to stop the “disaster” that Common Core has foisted on the state. “This is state-sponsored child abuse,” he said.
Dr. Gary Thompson would agree.
Among other problems with the controversial standards, Graf cited wildly inappropriate material, massive costs, the devastating impact on teachers and students, and more. “If you wanted to destroy public education, this is what you would do,” he said. “Teaching is a skill. Teaching is an art form. What they are doing here is turning teachers into hall monitors.”
When will Utah teachers and schools speak out? It took Alpine School District years of complaints from parents before they started teaching the times tables and long division to children again. There’s a reason why there are more charter schools in ASD per capita than any other district… Common Core will create a push for alternate education, but this time it’ll be home school and private school to escape the nonsense.
The material is often highly inappropriate, the lawmaker continued. “Explain to me why a first grader has to point out ancient Mesopotamia on a globe or explain their contributions to modern civilization — they’re six,” Graf said, citing a broad range of examples illustrating that the controversial standards appear to have been poorly thought out — at the very least. “But you know there are a lot of people making money on all this.”
Bingo!
Graf, who represents a Long Island district, also told The New American that Common Core fails to take into account children with disabilities. One special-education teacher who spoke out during the forums held across New York, for example, told lawmakers about the disasters she has experienced under the new education scheme. The kids were being tested on material they never learned and, sitting still for 90 minutes to take the new tests, were deeply confused. One distraught child was even caught stabbing himself with a pencil under the desk during the test.
“She was breaking into tears testifying about this,” Graf said about the special-education teacher who shared the story. “I have parents pouring their hearts out telling me how their kids are coming home and don’t want to go to school anymore. I have kids that loved math and now hate math.” Some teachers who testified, knowing that they could be putting their careers in jeopardy, told lawmakers that they just “couldn’t sit there and let them do this to these children.”
Dr. Gary Thompson and Ed Flint should have no problem supporting themselves in the future. Deja Vu. I think I just wrote that.
Problem 1: Don’t scroll down for the answer yet on how to solve this. Try to figure out the correct answer.
Problem 1 solution: Get one of the values to 10 and then add the remaining number to get the total. So for example, you would say, “I have 8 here and 6 here. To get the 8 to 10 I would add 2. That means I have to subtract 2 from the 6 so it’s 4. So I have 10 and 4 which add to 14.”
Very intuitive, no? Try another.
Problem 2: Don’t scroll down for the answer.
I told you not to scroll down for the answer. Welcome to constructivist math.
Memorizing basic facts is evil and too tedious for children. This will no doubt build a deeper understanding as children struggle to understand math.
Dr. Gary Thompson and Ed Flint should have no problem supporting themselves in the future.
Alpine School District Board member Brian Halladay was one of 3 winners of our essay contest. Here is his essay:
