Panelists debate Common Core at forum in Ridgewood
OCTOBER 9, 2014 LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2014, 5:01 PM
BY BY JODI WEINBERGER
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
It’s not likely that a two-hour panel of experts both for and against the Common Core state standards and the standardized testing it’s linked to changed any minds of the hundreds of parents who watched the debate at the Ridgewood Library last Thursday.
Early in the event the fire department was brought in to handle the massive outpouring of interest, which significantly exceeded the 212-person capacity of the room. Some went home after being urged to do so by library staff, but most stayed packed tightly next to each other, leaning against the walls or sitting on the floor.
“It reinforced my positive view of the Common Core,” said Sara Erwin following the debate. “Knowing the teachers at the high school in Ridgewood, they’ll make it work.”
Kim Barron, of Mahwah, said “nothing changed my mind in my opposition.”
“I don’t think that the ‘pro’ people made their case,” Barron contended.
Resident-led advocacy group Ridgewood Cares About Schools (RCAS) joined with the Ridgewood League of Women Voters to host the panel of six experts representing both local, state and national voices on the topic.
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/panelists-debate-common-core-at-forum-in-ridgewood-1.1106337#sthash.9h7kVRqP.dpuf
