stacking up our education options
DESCRIPTION
Stacking Up Our Education OptionsTRANSCRIPT
Prepared by BYUI COMM 352 students
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Increased Parenta l Involvement
Project Based Learn ing
Common Core State Standards
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The United States has been a leader in providing public education to all of its citizens for over 200 years. Dedication to educating its young has paid off in the past and made the United States a global leader. However, as the world entered the 21st century the United States seems to have stalled in continuing its pursuit to stay on top. Other countries have intensified their education programs and are catching up and outpacing the United States.
In this forum, we will discuss a brief history of the United States that has led us to where we are today followed by the scope and ramifications of continuing to do what we have always done and then offer three options to change the trend. Option I, Increase Parental Involvement, Option II, Implement Project Based Learning, Option 3, Utilize the Common Core State Standards. We encourage citizens to consider the options presented, choose one or more options that piques your interest, and then jump in to make a difference.
History & Nature In 1780 Thomas Jefferson represented around 2 million citizens as President of the United States. Jefferson created the first, two track system of public education; the first track being that of the “laboring” class and the second track as the “learned” class. At this time, the United States economy was based on agriculture and many laborers were needed. Jefferson’s plan was to put schoolhouses within three miles of every home. Families could then send their children to school for three years for free. At the end of the three years teachers would select the brightest poor boy on to grammar
school while the others returned to work (Vollmer). This process of educating and selecting the brightest students continued resulting in very few being educated at the university level. During this time, the economy demanded “laborers” not the “learned.”
As the United States entered the 20th century, there were around 50 million citizens. Industrialization was taking place and the needs of America were changing. Citizens were leaving farms and headed to the cities to work in factory assembly lines. These workers were hired to perform specific tasks where they were closely monitored and tightly controlled. “They were paid to do what they were told—no more, no less” (Vollmer). Assembly line machines were designed to limit the thinking that was needed by the employee. “Thinking was reserved for the growing class of managers” (Vollmer).
It was during the 20th Century that labor laws became important. This created an influx of students to the education system and more learning time was available. Education for all through high school became the new norm. Through the Industrialization Era the need for “laborers” still exceeded the need for “learners” but they were becoming more equal (Vollmer). The system was still working.
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The United States entered the 21st Century with over 281 million citizens and transitioned from the “Industrial Age” to the “Knowledge Age” (U.S. Census Bureau). While agriculture, natural resources, and industrialization are still part of the economy, they no longer drive it. “Knowledge has become the new wealth. Employees must learn, and apply what they have learned, faster than the competition” (Vollmer).
Dr. Amy Pancheri, Superintendent in Idaho defined the 21st Century job market as “fluid and ever changing. Jobs available today may be gone by the time today’s high school students graduate from college and jobs available to them in four years may not even be thought of today.”
The worker ratio has reversed. Today’s world requires more “learned” people and fewer “laboring” people.
Scope Jamie Vollmer, author of Schools Can’t Do It Alone, said, “For the first time in our history, our security, prosperity, and the health of our nation depend upon our ability to unfold the full creative potential of every child. Not just the easy ones, not just the top twenty-‐five percent of the class.” We must engage every child at deeper levels to prepare them for today’s job market. Students graduating from high school need to be college and work with 21st Century skills.
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Major prob lems Dropouts
• Only 70 percent of high school students in the United States receive their diploma in four years (Amos 2).
• The current education system produces 1.2 million dropouts every year (Amos 2).
• Individuals who fail to earn a high school diploma have a harder time finding a job, are generally less healthy, die earlier, and are more likely to become parents when very young, more at risk of getting in trouble with the law, and need social and welfare assistance (Amos 5).
• The children of high school dropouts are more likely to continue in their parents’ footsteps and the poverty cycle continues on and on (Amos 5).
Remediat ion
The National Conference of State Legislatures reports that:
• Between 28 and 40 percent of first-‐time undergraduate students enroll in at least one remedial course.
• 25 percent of students who took the ACT met the test’s readiness benchmarks in all four subjects (English, reading, math and science) in 2012.
• It is estimated that remediation costs $2.3 billion dollars yearly. • Less than 25 percent of remedial students at community colleges earn a
certificate or degree within eight years.
Baby Boomers
• With the retirement of the baby boom generation there will be an even greater need for well-‐educated workforce to replace them (Amos, 28).
• Every day for the next 19 years, about 10,000 Baby Boomers will turn 65 (Cohn). • Ther 79 million Baby Boomers account for 26 percent of the total U.S. population
(Cohn).
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A “ learned” labor market requ ires
• Frontline workers function in a self-‐directed, multi-‐ethnic team where they set goals, develop budgets, control quality, and solve problems (Vollmer).
• Employees are required to add value, variety, and convenience to products and services (Vollmer).
• Low/mid-‐level workers routinely direct physical, monetary, and intellectual resources, which used to be at the sole discretion of upper management (Vollmer).
• More STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) related jobs (Colby). • A higher education level (Colby).
Ramif icat ions Consider the costs of not fully educating our citizens to compete in the “Knowledge Age”
• The lifetime cost of a single high school dropout is approximately $260,000 in lost earning, taxes, and productivity (Amos 2).
• If the students who dropped out of the Class of 2008 had graduated the nation’s economy would have benefited from an additional $319 billion in income over their lifetimes (Amos 2).
• High school dropouts are far more likely than high school graduates to be arrested or incarcerated requiring additional spending in the criminal justice system (Amos 2).
• High school dropouts influence a community’s economic, social, and civic health, which requires additional spending on social programs and drains state and federal coffers (Amos 2).
Status quo is no longer going to produce the workforce needed to thrive in the 21st Century. Vollmer said, “It is abundantly clear that low-‐skill/high-‐wage jobs are gone. A strong back, a willingness to work, and a tolerance for tedium will no longer afford access to the American Dream” (Vollmer).
What can we do?
• Option I: Increase Parental Involvement
• Option II: Project Based Learning
• Option III: Common Core State Standards
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The single greatest indicator of whether or not a child will be successful in school is how involved his parents are in the child’s education. By taking simple steps, parents can erase advantages or disadvantages of wealth, social position, gender or ethnic background. A recent study conducted by North Carolina State University, Brigham Young University and University of California, Irvine determined that parental involvement is more significant to academic success than the school itself (Dufur). Children whose parents are involved in their schooling:
• Earn high grade-‐point averages and scores on standardized tests or rating scales • Enroll in more challenging academic programs • Pass more classes and earn more credits • Attend school regularly • Display positive attitudes about school • Graduate from high school and enroll in postsecondary programs, and refrain from
destructive activities such as alcohol and drug use and violence (The National Center on Secondary Education and Transition (NCSET)).
Educate parents – Why should I be invo lved?
The extent to which parents are involved in their child’s education determines to a great degree, his/her success in school. Vocabulary is built in the home. Higher vocabularies, greater socialization skills and self-‐confidence are all developed primarily outside of school. Research suggests that the greatest disadvantage for low-‐income children was the lack of words they heard before age 4. According to the study, “by age four, a child from a welfare-‐recipient family could have heard 32 million words fewer than a classmate from a professional family” (Hart, and Risley).
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Parents play an important role in “academic socialization” – defined as setting expectations and making connections between current behavior and future goals such as going to college or getting a job. These efforts put forth by parents (reading stories aloud, meeting with teachers) have a bigger impact on their children’s educational achievement than the effort expended by either teachers or the students themselves. In order to get the same level of results, schools would have to increase their spending by more than $1,000 per pupil.
Teach Parents – How can I be involved?
Parents are the child’s first and greatest teacher. They have more influence on him/her than any other. Parents don’t need anything special to teach, they just need to care and interact with their child. Because children begin to learn as soon as they are born, it is important for parents to begin teaching at that early age.
Talking and singing to infants is an excellent first step. As children listen to their parents, they come to understand the meaning behind words. They also come to understand what behaviors are good and what is unacceptable. Another critical activity for young children is reading. By sharing books with their children, parents increase the chances that they will succeed first in school and then in life. Parents need to be aware of the value of checking homework, attending school events and talking to children about the importance of school. These actions reassure children that their work is crucial.
When asked, “What would you do to make education stronger?” Margaret Meacham, a local educator said, “It should be family centered, parent centered. It needs to start from birth to three. That means that we need to teach parents to observe and respond.”
Parents need to observe what their children are doing and respond both verbally and with their attention. The interaction increases the infant/toddler’s learning. The whole world becomes their school. “When parents are coached, they are just as effective at working with their child’s language concern as a speech/language pathologist,” Ms. Meacham said.
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Bui ld H igh Fami ly Soc ial Capita l
Researchers evaluated data and collected information from more than 10,000 students, along with parents, teachers and school administrators. They were concerned with what they labeled “family social capital” versus “school social capital.” Family social capital referred to the bonds between parents and children. Did they have trust for each other? How well did they communicate? Was the parent engaged in the academic progress of the child? School social capital measures the capacity of the school to provide a positive learning environment, including extracurricular activities, teacher ability and morale.
It was discovered that if students had high family social capital, they could still be successful even if they had low school social capital. Essentially, they were better off academically than those students who had high school social capital and poor family social capital (Society for Research in Child Development). Family social capital is built through parent involvement through all levels of education. The frequency of talks, the establishment of family rules and expectations build family social capital. Though parents may spend less time checking homework in high school, the times where families work and play together build the capital necessary to sustain educational success. At this stage, parenting style and expectations have a greater impact on student success than did specific family rules.
Engage parents – P lan for Parent Involvement
To meet the needs of the 21st century, schools must engage parents in the process. Parents need to understand how valuable they are to their children’s success. When parents understand that their actions will benefit their children, they will become involved. In addition, parents tend to be more involved if they perceive that school staff and students both want and expect their involvement.
Schools must also understand the value of engaging parents. In order to ensure that parents become and stay involved, schools need to have strategies to connect with families, engage them and then sustain their participation. Activities and opportunities to involve parents should be part of the school vision and mission. Policies and procedures should maximize parent involvement. Above all, schools should be welcoming and inviting to parents.
Some strategies that could be helpful in engaging families include:
• Survey parents to determine the best time to have activities and meetings. o Provide various times to meet the needs of more parents.
• Provide incentives including refreshments and door prizes. • Use alternative forms of communication.
o Encourage email participation for suggestions or questions. o Transmit information to parents through listserv.
• Create a hotline for parents to voice concerns. • Provide parenting support
o Provide parenting training opportunities • Institute home visiting practices • Encourage parents to be part of the decision making process • Teach parents how important they are to their children’s success (Centers for
Disease Control).
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• Children whose parents are involved are more successful in school.
• When parents are involved children are less likely to drop out of school.
• Children whose parents are involved are less likely to abuse drugs or alcohol or commit violent crime.
• Families will have to prioritize family interaction over more passive activities such as; hours of television or time away.
• Schools and families may need to boost education of some parents to maximize student success.
• Parent/school will need to cooperate in decision-‐making.
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Education has the need to be improved and many administrators have come up with ways to do this improvement. After twenty years of teaching, Cynthia Risner and Bea Jenkins founded J. Paul Taylor Academy. Both understood that students needed more than they were getting in the public school system. They both wanted a program where they could keep students actively engaged. They believed that they had to let the teachers and students think outside the box. Cynthia Risner, Head Administrator for J. Paul Taylor Academy charter school said “teachers are professionals and they should be allowed to think and use their knowledge to teach the students and not let a book take over the classroom.” After much research, Risner and Jenkins discover a program called “Projected Based Learning”. Risner and Jenkins had a concept they just need a name for it. Project Based learning fulfilled their needs and they took on a project to open a charter school in Las Cruces, NM.
Solut ion to thei r Prob lem: Project Based Learn ing
According to the Buck Institute of Education in Project Based Learning (PBL), students go through an extended process of inquiry in response to a complex question, problem, or challenge. While allowing for some degree of student "voice and choice," rigorous projects are carefully planned, managed, and assessed to help students learn key academic content, practice 21st Century Skills (such as collaboration, communication & critical thinking), and create high-‐quality, authentic products & presentations.
Cynthia Risner, says, “I enjoy seeing students excited about learning.” Project based learning allows the students to learn.
Project Based Learn ing is intended to teach sign if icant content
Schools adhere to academic discipline and teach students basic standards and key concepts. These goals are important to ensure that school standards within the school district are reached. In Seven Essentials for Projected Based Learning, we are taught that teachers can powerfully activate students' need to know content by launching a project with an "entry event" that engages interest and initiates questioning. Risner, says “In a nut shell, Project Based Learning, teachers assess what the students want to learn and plot out their interests and build on the benchmarks.”
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Students and teachers using Project Based Learning method are able to have an in-‐depth inquiry of subjects that they want to learn. “Project-‐based learning gives everybody a chance to sort of mimic what scientists do, and that's exciting. And it's fun if it's done well” (Curtis). Research shows that students find projects more meaningful. Project based learning is more interactive than the typical -‐ research information, put it on a poster or create a power point presentation. Students come up with questions and search for answers that can lead to more questions, formulate test ideas and conclusions. Projected Based Learning teaches students to open their minds allowing their creativity to be expressed. Students are encouraged to present their work to classmates, teachers and anyone interested in their findings. This allows students to present a better quality of work. Student progress is apparent, even without testing.
21st Century Ski l l s
A project should give students opportunities to build 21st century skills such as collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and the use of technology, which will serve them well in the workplace and their life. (Larmer and Mergendoller). Risner says “students are able to obtain skills that they are not able to get anywhere else.”
Collaboration is part of project based learning as many projects are done in groups. Students learn to work with classmates as well as teachers. Being part of a team allows them to build confidence, discipline and being timeliness. Teamwork is an essential part of today’s society. Also, according to the article "Project-‐based learning: the pros and cons," students organize their tasks and find resources for their project. This might involve foraging for what they need in the field or working with local business leaders with the resources to help out (Psyche).
Communication becomes part of learning as students find ways to communicate with their team or others in order to receive the information needed for their research. For example, students from J. Paul Taylor Academy had to find the rules in order to have an end-‐of-‐year party on school grounds. Since the school is located in a small housing community, the students had to call city officials and find out rules and then had to go around the community to ask for signatures so they could hold their event. Through this project students learned different types of communication. These skills enabled them to learn how to properly organize an event. Risner says, “The Students learned real life communication skills.” Students learn to complete projects in teams. Additional, they gain communication and leadership skills that they can adapt to the real world (Psyche).
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Critical Thinking is a major part of project based learning as the students work on projects they learn, not only to find information but also think for themselves and come up with conclusions as they test their ideas. A major part of the program is creating hands on projects that allow the students to be part of the solution. Formalizing a process of feedback and revision during a project makes learning meaningful because it emphasizes the creation of high-‐quality products and performance as an important purpose of the endeavor. Students need to learn that most people's first attempts don't result in high quality and that revision is a frequent feature of real-‐world work (Larmer and Mergendoller).
Last but not least is the use of technology. Nowadays, technology is part of everyone’s work place. Even the smallest business has some sort of computer. Because computers are so important, students must be taught to effectively use modern technology. Project base learning encourages students to used technology by doing research and creating PowerPoint presentations. There are many ways technology is used in the program; students are encouraged to use technology as part of their everyday projects.
An Edutopia website article discussing the positive results of project based learning states: In a five-‐year study, researchers at SRI International found that technology-‐using students in Challenge 2000 Multimedia Project classrooms outperformed non-‐technology-‐using students in communication skills, teamwork, and problem solving. Researchers from The Center for Learning in Technology, led by Bill Penuel, found an increased of students engagement, greater responsibility for learning, increased peer collaboration skills, and greater achievement gains by students who had been labeled low achievers (Edutopia). Additional, a 1992 study of 700 students from eleven school districts in Tennessee found that students doing projects using videotaped problems over a three-‐week period performed better in a number of academic areas later in the school year (Edutopia). Project Based Learning will continue to help students in various communities as long as the public is open to new ideas and willing to let those that believe in the program to be implemented.
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• It encourages greater understanding.
• PBL develops lifelong learning skills.
• The method affords more intrinsic reward.
• It creates some anxiety because learning is messier.
• Less content knowledge may be learned.
• Faculty buy-‐in and staff development with support are essential (Weimer).
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The Common Core State Standards are a vehicle for change; a foundation; a starting point. If properly implemented by school districts, principal, and teachers, The Standards will improve public education by providing American students with the quality of education needed to compete in today’s global economy, regardless of where they live. As previously discussed in this book, our current public school system does not meet the needs and expectations of today’s marketplace. The Common Core State Standards were established for the educational needs of the 21st century student.
Standards for grade level are not new to our system. In 1965, Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson passed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act which forbids the establishment of a national curriculum and emphasizes equal access to education while demanding high standards and expectations. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is an Act of Congress, attributed to Pres. George W. Bush, which reauthorized the ESEA and supports standards-‐based education reform. The Act required states to establish grade level expectations, and to assess the ability of students to demonstrate mastery of the expected material at selected grade levels. Each state was left to determine its standards and exam content and procedures. NCLB effected funding for schools based on students’ performance on the standardized tests.
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While NCLB stimulated progress in our nation’s schools, there were draw backs to this approach. A student who moved from state to state would lose ground or have holes in their content knowledge due to varying sequencing of subject matter. For example, one young student whose father served in the United States Army attended rigorous, all-‐day kindergarten in Philadelphia. Her first through third grade experience was less academically intense in Ohio. From there, their family relocated to Georgia; in fourth grade she was taught math subject material that she had learned as much as two years earlier in Ohio.
We claim to be “One Nation,” yet depending on where a student lives, their quality of education is vastly different, and if they move from state to state their education suffers. Recognizing this disparity, a coalition of Governors came together to assess the educational needs and expectations for our nations students. Working with education experts from 45 states, The Standards were drafted with the goal in mind of providing American students with a quality education which will prepare them for higher education and the workforce. “The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers. With American students fully prepared for the future, our communities will be best positioned to compete successfully in the global economy. It should be clear to every student, parent, and teacher what the standards of success are in every school” (Common Core).
The bar graph indicates the rank of US students as compared to 49 countries for overall annual rate of growth in math, reading and science from 1995-‐2009; students in Iran, Mexico, Poland, Slovenia and Chili, to name just a few, are outscoring ours. The growth of American students in the core subjects falls in the median range; as the unsettling title indicates, our students are barely keeping pace. This progress is insufficient to sustain our nation’s stability in an international marketplace. The Common Core addresses this shortcoming – it builds on the standards of highly effective states and foreign countries that have proven track records of success. Those who oppose the Common Core are concerned that The Standards will limit progress not only in previously successful states, but also in high performing students. Supporters assert that the Common Core is a floor, not a ceiling, for states to build upon. Some argue that State’s rights are being infringed upon by asserting a national curriculum, but the Common Core State Standards are not a curriculum. States, school districts, schools, and even teachers retain the flexibility to implement The Standards through curriculum that they deem relevant and appropriate for their classrooms and students.
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Inte rview
The following transcript relays the dialogue with Bev George, a 3rd grade teacher in the Evergreen, WA School district. She was asked to assist in writing the District Math Common Core Pacing Calendar, and spent 6 full time days working with 8 other teachers dissecting and configuring the new math standards. During our interview, she explained how the 3rd grade Common Core State Standards compare to the previous Washington Standards.
What are the differences in the CCSS for math when compared with previous math standards?
Common Core increases emphasis on multi/division earlier in the year and beefs up fractions (equivalencies of unlike denominators, ordering fractional placements on a number line, etc.) and adds area, where we only taught perimeter before, just to name a couple of examples.
What are the differences in the CCSS for language arts when compared with previous language arts standards?
What I do know about Reading is that Lexile levels are increasing for our grade level, with a return to more classic texts, which were written for children, but ended up being used as read-‐alouds because of the difficulty. Children will now be responsible for reading and responding to them themselves. They'll have to spend less time with "graphic novels" (yes!).
What difference does this make for you?
My real work happens in the classroom, where I push up my sleeves and get to work where the rubber hits the road with my students at his/her level and move them forward.
In your experience, how are teachers coming together to make the CCSS a reality?
The conversations we have when we come together sound like, “Here’s the problem I’m seeing with this group in their concept of division. So, what are you using to help them understand dividend is a whole and the divisor is a part and the quotient is a part? What are you doing to help them know that?” I hear that kind of dialogue going on, I am confident that it’s being done well. But, that’s the administrator’s job to watch and see to make sure; there have always been tools in place – observations, drop in visits, examining lesson plans, examining a portfolio of each teacher’s work.
What is the most exciting part of the CCSS to you?
We are increasing what children are learning. When it comes to the word “common” I actually celebrate that we are stepping into the digital age that we are in. We have children who are transferring from here to there with their parents’ jobs quickly. Having standards in common is a great thing.
What do you think is the source of the clamor surrounding the CCSS?
Everyone in American is an expert on my job because they all lived my job for 13 years as a student in the classroom. Everyone puts their background experience into their belief system. Teaching is one of the most controversial jobs out there – it is the only profession where everyone has an opinion.
What would you say to those who are fearful of the CCSS?
There is a lot of negative press out there right now. I have personally felt that in this day of transitory student populations and access to instant information, we are long overdue for a national standard of education. As I read the standards (and I admit I've only read 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade's thoroughly), I don't see the "dumbing down" that others claim Common Core has embedded in the learning. I see a push, and all the teachers I know are gearing up for increases in the learning targets. Teachers are still allowed (mandated, really) to individualize learning for the needs and learning styles of their classes and students. That will not change, nor has anyone in the field of education suggested that Common Core equates to a lock-‐step system of teaching.
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Experts’ responses
• "Strong schools are the surest path to our nation's long-‐term economic success. America's students are now competing with children around the globe for jobs and opportunities after graduation. We need to maintain a national focus to ensure our kids are ready to compete and ready to win. That's why our nation's governors committed to this effort to create a common set of high expectations for students across the country. The Common Core State Standards reflect what can come from cooperation to improve student achievement," said Delaware Gov. Jack Markell, from Delaware.
• "The Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents have a roadmap for what they need to do to help them. Further, these standards provide appropriate benchmarks for all students, regardless of where they live, and allow states to more effectively help all students to succeed," commented Steve Paine, West Virginia State Superintendent of Schools. "I am excited to have a common framework from which to share best practices with fellow superintendents across the nation. With students, parents, and teachers all on the same page and working together for shared goals, we can ensure that students make progress each year and graduate from school prepared to succeed and build a strong future for themselves and the country."
• "Our best understanding of what works in our schools comes from the teachers who teach in our classrooms every day. That is why these standards establish what students need to learn, but do not dictate how teachers should teach. Instead, the standards enable schools and teachers to decide how best to help students reach the standards," said Florida Commissioner of Education Dr. Eric J. Smith. "We are entering the most critical phase of the movement for Common Core State Standards. It is now up to states to adopt the standards and carry on the hard work of the educators and community leaders that worked to develop them."
• "We believe that this initiative is a critical first step in our nation's effort to provide every student with a comprehensive, content-‐rich and complete education. These standards have the potential to support teachers in achieving NEA's purpose of preparing students preparing students to 'thrive in a democratic society and a diverse, changing world as knowledgeable, creative and engaged citizens and lifelong learners.'" -‐ Lily Eskelsen, Vice-‐President, National Education Association
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• Common Core standards provide common metrics to compare the performance of schools and districts across the country.
• Help states build a framework that could be the foundation for a common proficiency conversation.
• The standards are better than ¾ of the state standards they replaced.
• Analysts claim that the math standards are set 1-‐2 years behind international levels. “But it says something about the American educational system that, by global standards, mediocrity would be a distinct improvement.”
• Higher standards don’t guarantee better student achievement, they are only potentially helpful but low standards are uniformly destructive.
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Vollmer sums up the situation, “In a single generation; we have raised the bar from requiring universal student attendance to demanding universal student achievement…and that a good education—once considered a luxury by many—has become a basic requirement for success.” Minimally educated American’s will have fewer options to adequately support themselves and their families. We must educate students to the “learned” level or the burden to support the “laborers” will be too great for society.
Our nation is now “powered by innovation and fueled by knowledge and skills” which requires that we change what we have always done (Amos). Consider the options: Option I, increase parental involvement, Option II, support project based learning, Option III, utilize the Common Core State Standards in your area.
Choose your part and start.
Increased Parenta l Involvement
Project Based Learn ing
Common Core State Standards
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• Which option will be the most beneficial for my children? The teachers? The school? The state?
• What changes am I willing to make? • What are the short and long term effects of my choice? • How do I get involved? • How will these changes be made?
Websites:
• http://www.ncpie.org/ • http://www.parentinvolvementmatters.org/resources/organizations.htm • http://www.edweek.org/ew/issues/parent-‐involvement/ • http://www.bie.org/about/the_bie_story/ • http://www.gsn.org/web/pbl/whatis.htm
Organ izat ions:
• Center for Parent Leadership • J. Paul Taylor Academy • The Buck Institution for Education • Common Core: State Standards Initiative • Students First • The Gates Foundation • Thomas B. Fordham Institute • Education First