After speaking before a panel of legislators at the Southern Legislative Conference last week, it became clear that two words are muddying the waters: common and curriculum. Even at the political level, the misguided assumption is that the CCSS is forcing all states to follow the same curriculum and then the comments about communism or socialism ease their way into conversation. Before making any argument for or against CCSS, we must first understand that CCSS is NOT a curriculum. They are not even a full set of standards to be used to drive instruction. States will still supplement their own content standards according to testing. School districts and individual buildings will determine the methods and materials used for instruction. Teachers will even have more autonomy in their classrooms as they teach with more depth and less breadth.
The beauty of the standards are that they are a common set of skills, predominately in mathematics and literacy, that all students should have before entering college or the workforce. The standards are less focused on the content knowledge and more on the reading and analytical skills utilized to acquire such knowledge.
As a classroom teacher, the standards are not an issue of politics and government control, but instead a necessary reformation of classroom instruction. As a nation, we have diluted education. Individual success stories are present; however, as a unified nation “with liberty and justice for all,” we have failed our young people with a lack of consistent and rigorous expectations. The time for excuses and political debates has ceased, and unification through common but not dominating standards will uphold our educational unity.
The success or failure of the standards rests on the teachers. It is a colossal responsibility but teachers who are serious about student achievement will accept the baton and revitalize instruction. The political bantering and scoffing is only hindering teacher morale. Stop arguing and start providing professional support and clarity for teachers. We are here and willing, now lead us so that we can lead our students.
This blog is a contribution from one of our writers, Teacher Casie.