They’re Cuckoo For Cocoa Puffs! Plus An Edujob

The AFT comes out hard for Common Core in the new American Educator. John McWhorter comes out hard for direct instruction from NPR/The Root. Last line as true as it is depressing.   And my partner Kim Smith on education investing and social investing.

Want an edujob? Here is a great one at Teach Plus working with teachers on policy issues:  National Policy Director (pdf).

One Reply to “They’re Cuckoo For Cocoa Puffs! Plus An Edujob”

  1. While the idea is worthwhile, the Common Core article itself is unconvincing.

    Pedagogy, management and accountability are not fundamental to education? Why should we think that any set of standards will be utilized appropriately without these three lesser “fads” in place and functional? And why imply that Common Core is both necessary *and* sufficient to end educational equity without these “fads”?

    The listed benefits seem a bit off, as well:

    * Having state standards also allows teachers to know what will be tested…

    * …and these are generally shared among schools that students may transfer in and out of. Unfortunately, review and remediation is a troublesome aspect with our without Common Core, if teachers are going to be using different lesson plans and projects with different expectations in every classroom (which is what happens with state standards). And if students fall behind, they will of course need review and remediation wherever they go.

    * Is the thickness of textbooks really one of the reasons for our troubling education problems? Does anyone think that a smaller textbook will really make students more interested in reading it?

    * How does Common Core relate to teacher prep programs?

    * Collaboration only goes so far. Again, there are a common set of standards in every state, but has that alone been the impetus for teachers from different parts of the state to work together? Teachers in the same department will certainly work together, but they are already doing that to address the standards that are shared at their school/state.

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