Common Core -Problems and Solutions

Earlier today, I was interviewed by an AP reporter regarding Common Core. My task was to explain why some teachers dislike it so much. Apparently,  educators in DC just love Common Core, and can't understand why so many of us denounce it. I tried to break down the main problems I have found with the standards.

First, when looking at the standards established for K-5, I can see that the breadth of concepts is enormous, while the depth at which these concepts are explored is minuscule.  Second, many of these concepts go far beyond the foundational knowledge and skills that educators believe should be the focus at these grade levels. Finally, concepts introduced in these grade levels under CC are not consistent with what we know about cognitive development.  In other words, much of the "rigor" introduced is completely lost on students simply because they lack the cognitive mechanisms necessary for those skills.

My solution is simple. If we return to curriculum standards that allow K-5 students to gather strong, foundational knowledge, the sought after "rigor" would be possible in grades 6-12. At this stage, students will have had the chance to develop the cognitive skills and tools needed to take foundational thinking and, through the introduction of higher order thinking skills, transform into the critical thinkers we want to see.

I was asked if I thought the standards within CC were too high.  Sensing a tiny trap, I responded by saying that I believed the CC was fraught with what I call "misplaced rigor." It's not that we don't want our students to master the concepts, it's just that they should tackle them at developmentally appropriate moments.

I will update once I have received the finished article.

Why STAAR is an inaccurate measure of student achievement and growth

With the advent of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), a new era of standardized testing was ushered in. I could discuss the problems associated with tying funding to test results, but I'm devoting this entry to the unfair and often inaccurate process involved with these high-stakes tests.

Let's look at the unfair aspect first. Students are given a content area test each day of the testing window. They are overly stressed for two reasons. First, so much emphasis is placed on these tests that students are often overly stressed, some to the point of becoming physically ill. Second, we tell students over and over how important it is that they do their very best, leading to heightened anxiety. My question is, how can we expect our students to perform well under these circumstances? In a sense, we set them up for failure, and it all stems from the pressure placed on teachers and administrators.

Now, let's look at the inaccuracies that can be found in the testing results. First, there are, without question, students who show up ill on the day of the test. It goes without saying that the scores from those students will most likely not reflect their true abilities and are, thereby, inaccurate.  Second, and probably more importantly, is that these tests provide a very narrow glimpse of what the student has achieved. Because of test anxiety, a student's having a bad morning, and other related issues, that glimpse of ability may not truly reflect what a student is truly capable of.

To put this into perspective, our testing system is tantamount to judging a farmer on his crops without taking into account drought, pest infestation, and the like. Further, the one size fits all testing can be likened to asking an elephant, a monkey, a giraffe, and a turtle to climb the same tree.

It's time we eliminate these high-stakes tests in favor of a Spring evaluation such as the ITBS or CAT 5 as measures of growth. These tests in conjunction with periodic content testing (every 6 or 9 weeks) are more than enough to gauge success. Companies such as Pearson will vehemently disagree, but we should focus on what's best for our students and not on lining the pockets of big corporations.

The Death of Developmentally Appropriate Practice

Take a walk through any elementary school, and you're likely to see students diligently working at their seats or in groups. Sounds reasonable, right? Upon closer examination, however, you'll see students tackling problems and subject matter that used to be reserved for older students.

You see, instruction and complimentary activities were once governed by the concept of developmental appropriateness. In other words, concepts and activities were planned to meet the developmental readiness of students. For example, Kindergarten students were introduced to letters and their sounds, numbers and their corresponding object sets, and time was set aside for activities encouraging the development of emotional intelligence and interpersonal relationship skills.

Take a walk through a Kindergarten class now, and you'll see students at desks working on phonics practice, small groups where reading instruction is conducted, and no time for play is included. In fact, these students are expected to be reading fluently at a predetermined level. Further, their number sense is also expected to be advanced, including addition and subtraction concepts.

This is not just a Kindergarten problem,  however. Visit any grade level and you'll see students analyzing complex texts, solving math problems that require higher order thinking skills, and working on writing assignments that are expected to exhibit an incredible amount of complexity. These elements can be seen in grades as low as second.

All of this is done in the name of rigor...that if we push the bar higher and higher, we'll see better results. There's just one problem with this thinking. Students are not ready, developmentally, to tackle such complex concepts and required applications.

There are two main theoretical problems with education as it stands now. First, Jean Piaget was very clear in categorizing age groups according to their cognitive capabilities. Seven to nine year olds, for example are not cognitively ready to analyze a complex text like those given on the STAAR test. Another example is Bloom's hierarchy of cognitive abilities. Imagine a triangle divided into sections. At the bottom, there are spaces for knowledge and comprehension. Knowledge means what you'd expect...the gaining of facts and successful regurgitation of those facts. This is the most basic level of thinking. Comprehension involves the facts learned in the knowledge level and understanding how they work together. It is these two levels that used to comprise the instruction at the elementary level.

The other levels of Bloom's triangle include application (which can be integrated at the elementary level), analysis, synthesis, and evaluation...all of which are skills that should be introduced in high school and honed in college...period. Forcing our younger students to perform at these levels is not only grossly developmentally inappropriate, but it leads to undue stress, feelings of inadequacy even among our brightest students, and forces teachers to go against everything they were taught about cognitive development.

The solution? Return to curricula that is geared for the cognitive and developmental levels of the students. If we must continue to participate in standardized testing, those tests must also reflect the appropriate level for each group of students being tested.

I know I've said quite a bit, but I'm hoping my fellow teachers will share this post, write their legislators, and be advocates for our students.

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