What set me off on this prickly tangent was an article on CNN about
the gaffe made recently by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan (read the Op-Ed
piece by Kathleen Porter-Magee here http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/19/opinion/porter-magee-arne-duncan/index.html?hpt=hp_bn7) She rightly makes the point in stating that while yes, Duncan made a
bone-head comment that insulted white suburban moms (presumably directly referring
to the ticked off people of NY State, who have been berating the State
Commissioner of Education on his state-wide tour about the ill-received implementation
of the Common Core standards), the greater focus should not be on the insult
– but on
the real inequities and problems within our education system.
She’s correct, of course – there are enough ineffective and problematic
methods and practices in the US education system to write 168498721 giant
books on the subject. I have an unused Master’s in education so I have some notion
of situation of which I speak, and I have friends who do teach and who
have children in the public school system. The methods we’re using to teach
aren’t
working because we’re more interested in assessing and testing than we
are with learning. NY State had one of the more rigorous education standards in
the country (which wasn’t saying much) so the switch to Common Core really
upset the apple cart, perhaps because the work is more difficult, but also
because the content completely disregards the fact that children are human, not
automatons.
The math content that I’ve seen makes giant leaps in logic over a
short period of time, considering we don’t start formally educating out kids until
age 5 in kindergarten and then we have lengthy summer vacations etc etc. The
math homework being doled out to a 7-year old is enough to make even their
parents scratch their heads – they can solve the problem, but often not using
the half-baked method that is the focus of the assignment. Developmentally speaking, some of these methods just aren't appropriate for the children being subjected to the curriculum. Plus, it isn’t fair
to teachers – who have to cater to the new methods and standards and be observed
constantly by administrators without having been effectively taught themselves
how to implement the changes. Also, consider this: according to Diane Ravtich (http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/25/opinion/ravitch-common-core-standards/index.html?hpt=hp_t4) "
But the thing that really frustrates me is everyone’s refusal to
identify the issue for what it really is: a socioeconomic problem. It’s painfully
obvious – Duncan unknowingly implied it by identifying the largest detractors of
the Common Core system as “white suburban moms.” Think about that. We know
without question that the largest populations being failed by education in all
50 states
are ethnic minorities – African Americans, Hispanics, and Native American groups. Statistically speaking, these are the populations that
graduate from high school the least and don’t continue on to college. That’s not to
say that plenty of white students don’t drop out of high school or pursue a
degree in higher education, I’m speaking in generalities. Eventually, these
student have families of their own, and either they work 2-3 low-paying jobs to
make ends meet and aren’t really present to attend to the educational needs of
their children, or they’re caught up in drugs/alcohol or gang life and don’t
care much about whether their kids are struggling in school or not. So, which
population is likely going to have the parents who will turn up at a meeting to
complain vocally about the workload or ineffectiveness of Common Core? White
suburban kids, of course! This population has the time and money to sit and do
homework with their kids and watch them struggle. Who’s to say that black or
Hispanic urban moms aren’t angry about the effect Common Core education is having on
their
children? May be the demographics are skewed because these moms and
dads have jobs that don’t offer PTO and they can’t just call out on short notice
to attend a forum where they can express their displeasure with the state of
education in their neighborhoods. May be they had no idea there even was a forum
because they were occupied providing for their families and getting the bills paid. It’s absurd to me that in 2013, how much money you come from is still
the biggest indicator of how successful/comfortable you’ll wind up as an
adult in America.
It all comes down to the almighty dollar. And with everything we've accomplished as a species, we should be beyond this kind of primitive have vs. have-nots crap. Every child who attends school in America should have the same quality of education and attention to their needs as every other child - whether they live in a project in the Bronx or in a penthouse in Manhattan. Education shouldn't be a luxury - it should be a given. If we improve economic stability for the majority of the citizens of this country - we'll improve high school completion rates, we'll have a better educated workforce, and we'll be better equipped to improve the other issues that plague our nation. Let's raise the federal minimum wage, let's lower healthcare costs - let's do something because at the rate we're going - we'll be a giant nation full of dullards only capable of working assembly lines for the new world super power - most likely China.
