Audrey Jones

April 18, 2015

A Concealed Core
Common Core State Standards (CCSS) was supposed to be the glue to join the nations
education system. It was going to make schools and teachers in America more efficient. It was
also going to help many more students be prepared for college. CCSS was also deemed to be the
force that will make American school compete with global schools. Instead, it turns out that
CCSS is a machine for corporate America to get its hand into the nations education system.
Through CCSS big business, will take control of American schools by making it seem to be
the best thing for education. According to Toscano (2013), 79 percent of American voters knew
nothing or not much about Common Core (p. 412). Most people are better informed about
sports rather than knowing about policies being pushed upon education. If left unchecked CCSS
will change education for the worse. In a Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll discovered 40 percent of
American believe CCSS will not make much of a difference (Bushaw and Lopez, 2012 p. 11).
Teachers, parents and the community will have little or no control over decisions made in the
classroom. CCSS is far different than No Child Left Behind, instead it is a testing system that
will collect data on students for their entire education career (Toscano, 2013). The information
collected could determine what portion of the American pie the students are allowed to obtain.
Well-advanced students will be considered collegiate and workforce ready, but low
preforming students will not be candidates for those arenas. CCSSs main goal is to prepare
students for college and the business sectors. Some students do not aspire to attend college or
work in business. Their plans may be to work in the serves, agricultural or entertainment

industries. The purpose of developing standards were for schools to prepare all students to be
successful in any field. CCSS is threatening to reverse this theory. Students with learning
disabilities will again be separated and isolated from mainstream classrooms because their data
will be insufficient. The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) fought to make equality for
every student, but the gains will be reversed through CCSS. Standardize testing will determine
were a child should be placed in school and in the work place. According to Krashen (2014),
Common Core [uses] nearly the entire student populations as experimental subjects (p. 44).
High School students are often analyzed and polled about their habits. Elementary students
have been protected from certain examinations. CCSS is going to require detail analysis of
students K-12 without consulting parent. They will be tested and tested some more, so much so
that everything will be known about them. Decisions for their education career will be made
based on the data collected. The information provided through testing will carry more weight. A
students educational trajectory will not be determined by their yearlong progress, but by that
one, snap shot testing day (Krashen, 2014 p. 40). The assessments do not consider the real
student, how may be hungry or sick. It does not take into account that the student has poor
attendance and no parent support. CCSS starts making assumptions about students as soon as
they enter kindergarten. At this stage many preschool age boys dream of being a trash collector
and girls dream of being a mommies. Many of them have no ideas about personal finance or
what jobs provided the best income.
Common Core State Standards entered into schools with hardly no prior notice. Teachers
were not given the opportunity to digest it before implementation. For many educators it was
learn as you go. I was introduced much like in some communities. New houses are built, lots of
stores are added, along with more schools, but the roads are improved last. This makes mobility

difficult because to the population growth. Teachers were not a part of CCSS development, but
they are responsible for making it work in the classroom. The expectation is that teachers assure
their students are prepared to be assessed. They must adhere to direct instruction and not veer
from what is written in CCSS, Krashen (2014 p. 40). CCSS will transform teachers from
educator to surveyor of data. Teachers will conduct data conferences instead of progress
conferences. A teacher will not be able to give parents their professional opinion, rather test
information will sever as proof of progress.
CCSS is not bring the nations education system together, instead its causing division. It is
not helping students to be lifelong learners, but rather lifelong test takers. It is also making
teachers jobs robotic and full of monotony. The business model is not a cure for every situation.
Corporate big wig need to stay out of education and allow administrators, teachers and parents
decided what best for kids.

References
Bushaw.W. J. & Lopez, S. J. (2012). Public education in the United States. Phi Delta Kappan,
94 (1), p. 9-25.
Krashen, S. (2014). The common core. Knowledge Quest, 42 (3), p. 36-45.
Toscano, M. (2013). The common core: far from home. Academic Questions, 26 (4), p. 411-428.