Need for educational reform: Is Common Core the answer?

Identifying a NEED: Advocating for CHANGE

Research starting in the 40s touched on the concept that investments in children strongly correlated to economic development and visa versa, making economic development equally crucial to a child’s wellbeing. This correlation has identified a strong need to invest in our children’s development (source 1). During this same time period, advocacy groups emerged to rally support and resources and to promote change. Some organizations advocate for children traditionally marginalized by society due to issues, such as: gender, socio-economic background, etc and call on policymakers to give children priority over resources (source 2)(source 3) . Others stepped up to advocate for children with disabilities to have equal access to free public education (source 4).  Some even made bold statements, like education is a fundamental HUMAN RIGHT (source 5). These types of organizations promote change by mobilizing local, national and international partners to work together towards a shared vision in order provide equitable education for children.

Recent economists and organizations are building on the idea of equity in education and have identified early childhood education (mainly the first 5 years) as a key component of success not only in school, but in life. Early Childhood Education helps fill in the gap created by social inequalities and minimizes its impact. Recognizing this, the United States enrollment rates of children age four increased in recent years, but in 2011 we still ranked 26th out of 37 countries falling below the average. We are also trailing behind countries like Belgium, Spain and Sweden to name a few that have more than 90% of 3-year olds enrolled in some form of educational program (source 6).

Recognizing this gap and the need for further advancement, President Obama made the following statement during his 2013 State of the Union address:

“In states that make it a priority to educate our youngest children…studies show students grow up more likely to read and do math at grade level, graduate high school, hold a job, form more stable families of their own.  We know this works.  So let’s do what works and make sure none of our children start the race of life already behind." (source 7)

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Current Policy and How to Proceed

It all started in 1965 with The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (source 8) spurred out of the ‘War on Poverty,” promoting equal access to education and remains the foundation for education reform to this day. In fact, No Child Left Behind (NCLB) is built on this same platform, but called for Federal funding to bridge the the gap between rich and poor, in the hopes of moving towards equity in education (source 9).

Sounds great, right? WRONG. The NCLB act requires that school districts prove proficiency in math and reading, or they lose funding. What this policy fails to recognize are some of the following:

• Schools are funded largely by their communities, so the lower the income the less resources overall.
• Some low-income communities do not have a history of strong parent and community involvement with schools, leaving the education of student to fall largely on educators.
• Lower income communities have higher turnover of teachers and administration searching for greener pastures (source 10).
• Lower income communities have a higher ratio of ELL/BL learners that require additional resources.
• Early Childhood Education is currently the responsibility of the parents and low-income families are often unable to partake in this necessary education, setting them up to fail from the beginning.  Even programs like Head Start can not keep up with the demand (source 11).

Schools in low-income communities are set up to fail. So if a school is struggling due to lack of resources, they will get even less resources every year until they or re-structured or closed down.  

So, What is Next in Educational Reform? In 2011, in the absence of NCLB reauthorization, states were allowed to apply for a waiver. They could choose to adapt an alternative way to set standards, assess students and hold teachers and schools accountable. To date, 44 states have adopted COMMON CORE to meet this requirement by providing standards in Mathematics (learn through understanding) and English Language Arts (combining texts and literature to promote learning and creativity) (source 12). The end goal is to properly support students to be college AND career ready via this state-led initiative (source 13).

In Addition, President Obama has pledged resources to support Early Childhood Education (source 7).

Furthermore, organizations will continue to research, collaborate and advocate for change. Researchers identified that technology in the classroom promotes problem solving, collaboration and engagement and is creating polls to research access to technology (source 14). Organizations like AAIE  and Global Partnership  promote collaboration of global communities to connect resources, share knowledge of diverse ideas and hold each other accountable (source 15) (source 16) . These organizations all aid in supporting advocacy  as seen in gatherings such as The World Conference on EFA in 1990 where 155 countries vowed to work together to provide educational access to all children (source 17).

PROS of Common Core

• Receiving support from organizations like the National Education Association, that even work to influence policy to support the success of educational reform (source 18).
• Promotes Increased teacher preparedness programs like AACTE and continued education/training for current teachers (source 19).
• Provides building block for districts, but does not tie them to any particular curriculum giving teachers the freedom to be creative and have autonomy in the classroom (source 20).
• Promotes Cross-Curriculum studies where teachers collaborate, share ideas and also reinforce learning objectives across core lines (source 21).
• Moves away from traditional ‘search and destroy’ textbook learning, balancing learning through creative literature as well.
• Learning centered around preparing students for a career or college. With only 42% of students age 18-24 enrolling in college, we need to prepare the other 58% to enter the workforce and be successful (source 22).
• Embraces the use of technology as a means to increase collaboration, problem-solving skills and engagement.

CONS of Common Core

• Despite not  being fully  implemented and given the time to adjust, districts are already having assessments lead to penalties. Organizations like AFT  are advocating for a moratorium on penalties related to assessment.
• Common Core promotes creative lesson planning and collaboration with other educators, which requires more time.
• Not all teacher preparedness programs have aligned with common core, so new educators will enter the workforce with minimal understanding of the requirements. Also, current teachers are struggling to understand the ever-evolving requirements.
• Doesn’t address inequalities faced by low-income districts: Larger class sizes, more ELL/BL students, lack of resources/funding, higher turnover, decreases parental involvement, poverty, unstable home lives, to name a few.

Common Core is great in theory, but struggles to see results in implementation. 

I believe that until reform addresses the fundamental issue that  there is no EQUITY in EDUCATION without EQUITY in RESOURCES/FUNDING, educational reform will continue to fall short of its lofty goals.

Overall, it is a great start!

http://efacetoday.blogspot.com/2012/12/parents-guide-to-common-core-this-weeks.html

Bibliography: SOURCES

1.  National Conference of State Legislatures. (2014, January 22). New Research: Early Education as Economic Investment. Retrieved from http://www.ncsl.org/research/human-services/new-research-early-education-as-economic-investme.aspx
2.  Basic education and gender equality. (2014, January 22). UNICEF. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/education/bege_61625.html
3. UNITED NATIONS GIRLS EDUCATION INITIATIVE. (2014, January 22). UNGEI. Retrieved from http://www.ungei.org/247_5583.html
4. IDEA-the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. (2014, January 22). National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities. Retrieved from http://nichcy.org/laws/idea
5. Introducing UNESCO. (2014, January 22). UNESCO. Retrieved from http://en.unesco.org/about-us/introducing-unesco
6. Directorate for Education and Skills - Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2014, January 22). Directorate for Education and Skills - Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/edu/eag.htm
7. Fact Sheet President Obama's Plan for Early Education for all Americans. (2014, January 22).The White House. Retrieved from http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/02/13/fact-sheet-president-obama-s-plan-early-education-all-americans
8. Elementary and Secondary Education Act. (2014, January 23). Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elementary_and_Secondary_Education_Act
9. Background & Analysis. (2014, January 22). Background & Analysis. Retrieved from http://febp.newamerica.net/background-analysis/no-child-left-behind-overview
10. Sinquefield, R. (2013, September 20). Public Schools Are Failing, And That's A Healthy Sign For Good Teachers. Forbes. Retrieved January 23, 2014, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/rexsinquefield/2013/09/20/public-schools-are-failing-and-thats-a-healthy-sign-for-good-teachers/
11. National Head Start Association. (2014, January 22). - Sequestration Fact Sheets. Retrieved from http://www.nhsa.org/advocacy/advocacy/sequestration_fact_shee
12. Mission Statement. (2014, January 21). Common Core State Standards Initiative. Retrieved from http://www.corestandards.org/
13. Standards, Assessment & Accountability. (2014, January 21). CCSSO -. Retrieved from http://www.ccsso.org/What_We_Do/Standards_Assessment_and_Accountability.html
14. ITL Research. (2014, January 21). ITL Research. Retrieved from http://www.itlresearch.com/
15. Association for the Advancement of International Education: AAIE Strategic Plan. (2014, January 21). Association for the Advancement of International Education: AAIE Strategic Plan. Retrieved from http://www.aaie.org/page.cfm?p=372
16. About the Global Partnership. (2014, January 22). Global Partnership for Education. Retrieved from http://www.globalpartnership.org/who-we-are/about-the-global-partnership/
17. World Conference on EFA, Jomtien, 1990 | Education | United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (2014, January 22). World Conference on EFA, Jomtien, 1990 | Education | United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/leading-the-international-agenda/education-for-all/the-efa-movement/jomtien-1990/
18. Issues And Action. (2014, January 21). Rss. Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/home/IssuesAndAction.html
19. AACTE | Serving Learners. (2014, January 21). AACTE | Serving Learners. Retrieved from http://aacte.org/
20. Leadership for 21st Century Learning. (2014, January 22). Leading Learning in a World of Change. Retrieved from http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/leadership-for-21st-century-learning/leading-learning-in-a-world-of-change_9789264205406-5-en
21. Key Issues. (2014, January 21). AFT. Retrieved from http://www.aft.org/issues/
22. Fast Facts. (2014, January 23). Fast Facts. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=372