This really annoys me. I mean really annoys me.
The Blaze reports:
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan reportedly said on Friday that some of the opposition to the controversial Common Core State Standards is derived from wealthy white mothers upset to learn their children are not as bright as they thought.
According to the Washington Post, Duncan told a group of state schools superintendents he found it “fascinating” opposition comes from “white suburban moms who — all of a sudden — their child isn’t as brilliant as they thought they were and their school isn’t as good as they though they were.”
Look, I’m doing my research on Common Core. I’m not crazy about what I’m seeing. And I’m surprised that so many archdioceses have adopted the Common Core without truly knowing the details of it.
But I really don’t like the one size fits all standards across the country. That puts a few people in charge of what kids all across the country are learning. But if it’s so great why is it that those defending it resort to mocking opponents. And why does race play a role?
Is he saying that black urban Moms aren’t worried about their kids? Seriously? Only white suburban moms are worried about their kids’ progress in school? This is just flat out demonization. Saul Alinsky crap.
It just reminds me of the defenses of Obamacare we’d seen the past few years which essentially has people calling opponents racist. And now we see that those questioning the administration’s claims about Obamacare were correct all along. So now it’s the same with Common Core? If you question it, you’re a nutjob and likely a racist.
These outrageous statements from Duncan make me even more keen to research more about Common Core.
November 18, 2013 at 1:27 pm
"Common core" was a common (no pun) noun construct for what otherwise might be called the basics – English 101, History 101, and so on – for college courses, those which transferred with the student from school to school. Now the term refers to, well, I don't know; people talk about it, rather like Darwin's book (which I tried to read), but no one seems to know anything about it.
However, even a blockhead like me can discern when an argument is made on racism and sexism. The Honorable Secretary Duncan has based his defense on common core (whatever that is) by isolating and defaming an artificial class of citizens into silence: a racist accusing anyone who disagrees with him of being a racist. It's an old technique, and it's also an indefensible technique.
November 18, 2013 at 1:54 pm
What bothers me is the methods proposed for common core. They keeps saying the kids will learn to think scientifically. That makes no sense. Currently it is math and english standards. Why would we approach english scientficially. All of the goal are for getting jobs and going to college. They do NOT speak of human formation. Good literature is being replaced by writing reports,etc. It seems like great way to destroy our children's imagination and teach them to hate learning. Common Core removes the wonder of the learning.
November 18, 2013 at 2:06 pm
"… their child isn’t as brilliant as they thought they were and their school isn’t as good as they though they were."
It would also be nice if the Secretary of Education could construct a grammatical sentence.
November 18, 2013 at 4:48 pm
As a Traddie, Catholic grade school teacher, and as a political conservative (who is just as disenchanted with the state of politics as the fine Archbold gentlemen), I would caution against buying into the manufactured outrage concerning Common Core. The diocese I work for has already adopted it, and it has changed… nothing. If I can still teach Homer to 12 year olds, and analyze the brilliance of the Declaration of Independence with 8th graders, all Common Core amounts to is another layer of paperwork for me as a teacher (which is nothing compared to what No Child had us do). Benchmarks are for the comfort of political bureaucrats, and outrage for the bottom line of pundits: education will still originate from first the parents, then later, the teachers.
November 18, 2013 at 4:59 pm
At all levels and all ways the intelligence of discourse has plummeted. I remember the intellectual conservative sum of Buckley. I recall my disappointment at Limbaugh as he resorted to mockery and name calling as a manipulative strategy. The followers of Limbaugh like Maddox and orielly have completed the degeneration on TV. The mms had just become brain dead nonsense with no critical thinking required. It's everywhere and now is the default position of our two (highly corrupt) political parties. It's gotten so bad that for the first time I am hearing this name calling platitudinous nonsense in academics. I never used to in all my years, but my beloved academia has become a left wing, intolerant boot camp where open debate is nothing more than excuse to present more and more mindless trash that offends anyone with common sense….and some math courses.
November 18, 2013 at 5:07 pm
What I have seen of Common Core appears to have come straight from the theories of John Dewey, which have been dumbing down our government schools for decades.
November 18, 2013 at 6:19 pm
Homeschool!
November 18, 2013 at 8:48 pm
Maybe it's because these moms have the education and time to properly educate themselves. This is compared to say urban single moms, who would possibly be concerned but don't have the time to determine the truth.
November 18, 2013 at 9:05 pm
And can I say that I hate the emphasis on nonfiction texts. Talk about killing the drive to read. My kindergartner went into school essentially knowing how to read, but we have to fight him to read his homework every time he brings home a nonfiction text. Children thrive on narrative. There are plenty of years ahead for having to sit through nonfiction for homework. I think the goal right now should be to foster a love of learning.