Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Are the Common Core State Standards a Federally Mandated Curriculum?

One of the major concerns surrounding Common Core is that it is perceived to be a federal takeover of schools' curriculum.  A March 14, 2014 article in U.S. News addresses this issue.

The 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act forbids the Federal government from intervening in school curriculum development. States independently adopted the Common Core, a set of math and English Language Arts standards for K-12 students to reach by the end of each grade level. School districts design the curricula, and teachers create their own methods for instruction, selecting the resources best tailored to their lessons.
Confusion about what part the federal government plays in Common Core may stem from President Barack Obama’s Race to the Top initiative, which awarded more than $4 billion in federal grants to 19 states that demonstrated a commitment to education reform and innovation. Race to the Top applicants who agreed to adopt the Common Core standards had a small number of points (40 out of 500) added to their score, since the Core standards align with Race to the Top’s goals. While some right-leaning groups reject the standards, calling them an example of government overreach, other traditionally conservative groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce support them.
“There were several myths that kept rising to the top,” says Cheryl Oldham, vice president of education policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and vice president of education and workforce at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. But the Common Core is not a federal takeover of education, she points out. “If that was the case the Chamber wouldn’t support it,” she says.
While some federal funding has assisted with the roll out of the Common Core State Standards, the standards themselves emerged from a collaboration of state governors.  While these standards serve as benchmarks that the schools share, each school district makes its own decisions on the curriculum and instruction that will be used to meet those goals.  GCMS School district has been proactive at developing a strong curriculum that will  prepare our students for a successful future.

If you have questions about the curriculum at GCMS and how it relates to Common Core we encourage you to contact our Curriculum Office with any questions.

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Welcome!

Thank you for visiting!  The purpose of this blog is to provide information on the implementation of the Common Core State Standards at GCMS Schools.  Our hope is to address many of the issues relating to Common Core and show how we are addressing these new challenges within our own district.  We welcome your respectful feedback and hope you find these posts useful!