Watch Bill Gates Confirm Everybody’s Worst Fears About Common Core
Rather than defend Common Core from accusations of creeping nationalization, Bill Gates finally confirmed that yes, this is exactly what Core proponents are trying to accomplish—less local autonomy is a good thing.
Robby Soave|Sep. 30, 2014 10:42 am
Common Core critics contend that national education standards will erode local decision-making on school issues while promoting a national curriculum of sorts. Most Core proponents generally dismiss these concerns as unfounded.
But Bill Gates, a major financial backer of the standards, was atypically direct about what peddlers of standardization are trying to accomplish during aPolitico event on Monday. Rather than defend Common Core from accusations of creeping nationalization, he finally confirmed that yes, this is exactly what Core proponents are trying to accomplish—less local autonomy is a good thing, as he says in the video:
“Common Core I would have thought of as more of a technocratic issue. The basic idea of, ‘should we share an electrical plug across the country?’ Well, you can get partisan about that I suppose. Should Georgia have a different railroad width than everybody else? Should they teach multiplication in a different way? Oh that’s brilliant [sarcasm], who came up with that idea? Common Core, the idea that what you should know at various grades, that that should be well-structured and you should really insist on kids knowing something so you can build on it, I did not really expect that to become a big political issue.”
There you have it. Gates views the education system—the many myriad ways Americans could pass on knowledge to their children—as akin to choosing the correct railroad track size. The implication is obvious: after all, there is only one right railroad track size! Similarly, there is only one correct way to teach children, and all children must be taught that way, according to Gates.
https://reason.com/blog/2014/09/30/watch-bill-gates-confirm-everybodys-wor
If you look at the standards for each grade they are rigorous. I like high standards. How are schools going to get there? Can you just give teachers in Virginia the new standards and say “get going”? There needs to be teacher training and that is going to take money.
What I do not like is the idea that successful districts must change. Don’t hold back success. Everyone likes the idea of charter schools. Treat high performing schools like charters – we must be doing something right. Don’t mess with success.
1. the standards are not rigorous
2. the standards do not matter to Common Core architects – they will bend on the actual standards as long as
a) they control the standards
b) the standards are forced upon everyone
Interesting, isn’t it that the same people who elevate diversity of action are so invested in conformity of thought.
So we are presented with a choice between heeding advice from
1) A man who founded one of the world’s most ubiquitous companies
or
2) an unknown blogger on Reason.com.
You know why Singapore’s education system is so good? They have standards. Common ones, even. They are the Core of the system.
The risk is that we dilute the CC to the lowest common denominator. That can be avoided by the creation of tranches for high, standard and sub standard aptitude. Hey, the world needs ditch diggers too, Danny boy.
its truly scary that you think common core standards are anything like Singapore’s .Common core is all about politics and is the absolute antistasis of Singapore which is about learning , beside Singapore is a city state ,with slightly different demographics than the USA.
You live in a town that attacked people for proposing the use of Singapore math ??? and the same bunch of you complained about “no child left behind ” .The truth is if we adapt common core there will be no reason for Ridgewood to have a $90,000,000 school budget , mediocrity and stupidly need far lower investments .
Just received this email from the district superintendent. Dr. Stotsky’s views of Common Core are substantially aligned with that of Dr. James Milgram–in a word: Negative. I think Common Core is a ‘happy name’, meant to inspire confidence in ordinary citizens who don’t have the time to do their own research and are inclined to defer to so-called ‘experts’. In reality, the slightest interest paired with cursory research and at least some independent thought and analysis would reveal to almost every citizen and voter in Ridgewood that while we were busy doing other things, K-12 education in this country has devolved into a true farce.
Some derive substantial monetary profit from this circumstance (remember our dalliance with the new superintendent and his wife who turned tail and fled when they found the path into Ridgewood was not paved with rose petals?).
Some, like former Assistant Superintendent Regina Botsford, have been ‘All In’ on this development from the start due to their ideological bent being in favor of warping K-12 curriculum and policy toward their goals and dreams in other areas of life. For example, deliberately disadvantaging boys in math has long been a tool for those who wish to reduce what they see as a stubborn performance disparity in STEM academic subjects and perceived under-representation of women in relatively high-paying STEM jobs.
Still others, like Bill Ayers, and in the decided opinion of this anonymous author, Barack Obama, Valerie Jarrett, Rahm ‘Never Let a Crisis Go to Waste’ Emanuel, and Eric Holder, have found comfort and strategic advantage in creating and maintaining an environment of doubt and uncertainty, and if necessary, chaos. They envision a fundamental transformation of this country and are simultaneously targeting every institution that arguably represents or upholds a worthwhile tradition in the realm of Civil Society, be it religious, social, cultural, educational, moral, or otherwise, for degradation and destruction. And yes, you are right to observe that none of these people has articulated even a murky vision of what it is that they intend to build on the rubble they leave in their wake.
Finally, we have the Foundations, and the wealthy backers of same, like Bill and Melinda Gates, that are obsessed with perceived global overpopulation. Any collection of relatively well-heeled or at least arguably well-credentialed misanthropes with a sufficiently anti-social agenda, including most reform math zealots and other promoters of substance-denuding constructivist educational theories will be at or near the top of the list when it comes to attracting funding and other types of largesse from these organizations, who see themselves as citizens of the world and therefore do not concern themselves with the niceties of local accountability.
With this much firepower on the side of limiting the depth, breadth, value and utility of our children’s K-12 education, it is easy to become overwhelmed and leave it to the next guy or gal to show up at a local panel discussion that, likely as not, is intended to provide nothing more than the appearance of objectivity as Ridgewood and other New Jersey towns continue the process of throwing themselves headlong into the destructive morass of modern constructivist educational theory.
____________
Sent on Behalf of the League of Women Voters
October 1, 2014
Dear Parents/Guardians:
Interested in learning more about the Common Core State Standards and upcoming PARCC testing? The League of Women Voters – Ridgewood, and a parent group called Ridgewood Cares About Schools are co-sponsoring a panel on the subject on Thursday, October 2nd, at 7:00 pm at the Ridgewood Public Library. Six distinguished speakers, including the NJ Department of Education’s Assistant Commissioner, Bari Anhalt Erlichson, Ph.D., and Sandra Stotsky, Ed.D., Professor Emerita from the University of Arkansas, will present. Both sides of the issue will be represented.
It promises to be a very interesting and informative event. Please plan to arrive early because parking may be a challenge!
Sincerely,
Daniel Fishbein, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
You’ve got a lot going on in this statement, some of which is irrelevant, but the key point is yes, if we adopt a standardized education model, we should be able to educate our children for less.
Have a look at Khan Academy when you get the chance.
There are companies out there who are trying to flip the current model. The teachers don’t like it though, because it will change their roles.
BTW I get the feeling you don’t understand the Singapore system as well as you think you do.
we can educate our kids for less its called school choice , we have only been talking about on this blog for 8 years and now your going claim its going to save money ,you mean like Obamacare lol
Standards are benchmarks. Calling them conformity is incorrect.
Don’t we have standards in out schools now?
PARCC testing is supposed to be more about the child’s facility with using a computer than his or her knowledge of the subject matter being tested. This is untested, seat-of-the-pants, thrown-together Obamacare website territory we will be in, and there will be a huge blowback. Fifth graders in particular need to be ready for anything, given that their standardized math scores for this year constitute the first 1/7th part of the rubric that determines whether they are ranked in the top 10 percent of their middle school in math at the end of sixth grade. If they are not so ranked, they will be prevented from taking Algebra in 7th grade and will be exposed to the Constructivist CMP math curriculum during all of 7th and 8th grade. This will stunt their growth at a critical time, and will eventually seriously limit their ability to compete for acceptance to a top notch school of engineering or science upon graduation from high school. CMP math in the middle schools is ‘the one that hot away’ about six years ago during the most recent battle in Ridgewood’s protracted Math War.
Don’t blame the teachers for common core. They are not responsible for every problem with school aged children.
We had Everyday Math in middle school. In my opinion the worst program ever. That was not part of Common Core, that was selected for the “rigorous” Ridgewood Public School System.