A few days ago, I published Professor Stephen Krashen’s letter to the New York Times, in which he explained his opposition to the Common Core standards. Professor Krashen is coming from the progressive side of the spectrum.
Then Ireceived an email from Jamie Gass of the conservative Pioneer Institute in Massachusetts, which strongly opposes the Common Core standards from the opposite end of the political spectrum. Gass is especially angry that the CC standards replaced the proven and excellent Massachusetts standards. His letter is below.
As I mentioned earlier, I am neither a supporter nor an opponent of the standards. I am withholding my judgment until we learn how they work in real classrooms and what affect they have on students, teachers, and schools.
In the meanwhile, if advocates for the standards contact me and want to express support for them, I will be glad to post the other side. I am not printing Jamie Gass to express my view, but to express that of a conservative concerned about quality. Those who disagree should feel free to chime in.
Some of the references may seem like inside baseball, but this reflects the fact that so much surrounding the development of the standards occurred within the Beltway or a small corridor of the Northeast (not including the role of the Gates Foundation). Perhaps I should include a glossary to identify the players. Feel free to ask if you don’t know who the players are. The letter was originally written as a response to journalist Sol Stern, who chided the Pioneer Institute for not doing more to promote the E.D. Hirsch Core Knowledge curriculum:
Thanks for your confidence that little Pioneer Institute could have outdone over $100 million from the Gates Foundation and persuade the bluest state in the Union (and Deval Patrick in an election year) not to follow the lead of Arne Duncan on $250 million in RTTT money. In truth, an easier task would have been to change the directional flow of the Charles River. That said, we did have two-thirds of the authors of the 1993 law (Gov. Weld and Sen. Birmingham), as well as the president of the AFT-MA, two 2010 MA gubernatorial candidates, Sen. Scott Brown, and nearly every editorial board in the state, on our side against MA adopting CCSSI.
Sadly, our good friends at Achieve and Fordham were working hand-in-glove with Gates, US ED, a pro-Deval think tank in MA (MBAE [Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education]), and MA state officials to make sure MA adopted the academically inferior CCSSI standards. If MA adopted, the CCSSIers would argue, what state could resist, right? In point of fact, MBAE’s, Fordham’s, and Achieve’s Gates-funded evals of the Gates-funded CCSSI standards (a nice lesson in independence and objectivity there) was the basis for the MA decision to adopt. MA state DOE officials made this MBAE/Achieve/Fordham eval link clear in memo after memo on CCSSI. In the blog below, Sandy Stotsky made the still unanswered charge that Fordham’s evaluation of MA vs. CCSSI was little more than a thinly veiled effort to undermine our attempts to retain the higher quality and proven MA standards: http://jaypgreene.com/2010/07/29/stotsky-on-the-common-core-vote-in-ma/
Despite a year of empty reassurances from Mike Petrilli [Thomas B. Fordham Institute] that “not all states should adopt” and “we don’t think MA should adopt” it’s now clear that Fordham’s impulse towards bureaucratic compliance and illegal nationalization trumped their commitment to academic excellence. For example, they always laud not CCSSI’s academic quality, but the high number of states that adopted, or complied. A day before MA adopted CCSSI, Checker Finn [Thomas B. Fordham Institute] told the NYT something like, “no state should worry about adopting these standards” and their eval of CCSSI vs. MA was supposedly “too close to call.” In addition to being compromised by accepting $1 million in Gates money, via CCSSI Fordham has placed political expediency and bureaucratic adoption over excellence and proven results. Consequently, Fordham’s role in CCSSI has illustrated why after 20 years in Ohio (and even longer working with Lamar Alexander in TN) they have no results to show anyone, anywhere in terms of improved student achievement or NAEP scores. So, yes, as I said, the DC-based CCSSIers indeed “helped” Deval Patrick ruin the MA standards and reforms.
Regarding CCSSI’s legality, or I should say illegality, perhaps you’re correct – this should end up as a lawsuit. Doesn’t this tell us something tragic about the desperate state of public education’s decline in America? That is, something has gone terribly wrong when former US ED officials like – the ones at Fordham and Achieve – are working with Arne Duncan’s people, unelected/unaccountable private DC-trade groups, and the Gates Foundation to help state and federal officials circumvent, or violate federal laws? At the end of the day, in terms of democratic and civic education does it really matter if kids are reading the Founding Documents or Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address when the adults governing public education are openly violating federal laws?
Finally, as you know, the Framers established a mixed and complex republic that constitutionally designated certain powers to the national government and others – mostly on domestic matters – to the states and localities. Far from improving public education over the last 40 years, the more consolidated K-12 education has become, the lousier and more bureaucratic it has become. As Diane and Jacques Barzun have carefully mapped out in their various books, we are in a era of obvious educational decline wherein academic content and the liberal arts are repeatedly subordinated to regulation, compliance, bureaucracy, and education focusing on workforce development training and content-empty skills. This is an old story and CCSSI’s major proponents like Duncan, Gates, NGA, CCSSO, Tucker, and Achieve all advance this agenda.
Driven by ex-DC bureaucrats, CCSSI started with low expectations and never got to MA, IN, TX, MN, or CA’s level of academic quality. With David Coleman now at the College Board, aligning AP and SAT to CCSSI, those tests too will be dumbed down in a manner that will negatively impact all modes of K-12 schooling and higher education in America. In fact, CCSSI/2014 establishes a Year Zero for lower expectations in American education. Frankly, given the mediocre records of its major advocates, I see nothing in CCSSI that will reverse this trend towards decline, or any evidence that CCSSI’s one-stop-shopping-for-lower-standards won’t, in fact, dramatically accelerate a race to the middle.
I find it interesting that Jeb Bush & others are out there pushing the CCSS, while ALEC now has model legislation opposing it,: “State Sovereignty in Education Act.” In this draft legislation they write “…DOE has usurped the power of the State to control the curriculum and the methods of instruction and assessment in its public-education system, in violation of Federal law prohibiting DOE from directing a State’s
curriculum and of Amendment X to the United States Constitution….”
Yes, but read earlier post about Jeb Bush and you will see that he takes credit for persuading ALEC not to oppose Common Core (yet). Given its usual rightwing slant, one would expect ALEC to oppose Common Core, but Jeb has managed to keep them neutral so far
Thank you for setting me straight! I had just been given the ALEC draft legislation opposing the CCSS & assumed they were publicly against it.
Diane,
I have wanted to ask this for sometime and have been spending a great deal of my summer enjoying my pursuit of information to educate myself further on all things related to educational reform and its various entities. I have tried to read and research both sides, pro and con, all the hidden connections between the various players, money and financial goings on. It is very very hard to keep up while also preparing for this fall and staying on top of the horrors going on here in Louisiana.
I click on and read any articles you and your readers post and have read your book, many teaching theorists and those researching how children learn and how teachers can best support that.
I admire your neutral stance on many topics and your respect for other true education professionals even when you disagree in a few areas or subjects. I wanted to ask if there is a list of links or resources or researchers or schools of education that you might suggest for those of us who desire to further our personal quest to better ourselves as teachers? If this would place you in the position of “taking sides” and would prefer not to suggest resources I understand. I just wanted to ask since at times I have trouble with the background of so many individuals and organizations. Many of your readers have provided excellent background information and combined with what you provide it has been a great help. I have started my own glossary of many of the players in public education so I can keep them all straight and add to this as I read and learn more. If these is a better source you may know of I would welcome any guidance.
Thank you for your time and effort for us.
Yes and others have gone to ALEC making the case against Common Core. I’m just wondering Diane, why you are sitting on the fence. The 10th Amend. Alone should have every American opposing the Federal overreach. Jamie brings up valid and logical points but the 10th amend alone is all one needs to oppose the Feds involvement in education. What will it take for everyone to acknowledge the obvious failures from the time the USDOE was established?
Mr. Gass states: At the end of the day, in terms of democratic and civic education does it really matter if kids are reading the Founding Documents or Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address when the adults governing public education are openly violating federal laws?”
It would be nice to know exactly how those “governing public education” (and at least he framed it as ‘public education’ and not ‘government schools’) are “openly violating federal laws”. Without specific examples it’s hard to judge that statement as valid/invalid.
I would like to know if Mr. Gass holds the same thought of those “governing” in regards to the illegal, immoral occupations of aggression that are Iraq and Afghanistan and the resulting deaths and displacement of millions. Does he hold the same for illegally and immorally bombing and killing innocents in Somalia, Yemen, Pakistan? Does he condemn the illegal use of JSOC forces by the CIA to assassinate various supposed “terrorists” (invariably of the Islamic variety) around the world? Does he condemn Obama’s self proclaimed powers to kill those he deems “enemies”, those who have never had charges brought against them, who have never had their voices heard in a court of law? (Probably, he has to be against Obama if by self-definition he is a right wing conservative). I can go on and on and on with the illegalities and atrocities that the supposed adults governing this country commit. And I didn’t even get to the banking/financial sector’s many illegalities.
Seems to me, that as atrocious as some of our educational policies are they blanch in comparison to those mentioned above. And even if a policy and or action is legal, it does not mean it is just and ethical.
Duane, those who are Constitutionalists understand it is the Congress who has the authority to declare war. I do not speak for Mr. Gass, but the Neo-Con wing of the Republican party is the liberal wing of the Republican party. Those who would oppose Common Core based on the 10th Amend. most certainly should oppose wars NOT declared by the U.S. Congres per the Constitutional authority in Article 1 Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution.
Sadly we now elect politicians who ignore the 10th Amend. and Article 1 Section 8 too.
Your comments are both irrational and incoherent. Do you really want to speak of agressions in Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Iran, Libya, Syria? If the subject is Education try to stay focus on that as oppose to having a ADD moment! I suppose you blame 9/11 on our supposed immoral behavior. No country is blemish free, none! Name it if it exist. Anarchy does not make for a legalistic society. Someone always rises to the top! Your warped Utopian mindset will not give validity to the premise.
What strikes me most is the lack of information in the mainstream media telling the truth about the real data that shows the failure of these charter and turnaround schools. Here in Louisiana the Recovery School District (RSD) ranks at the very bottom of the list, yet the state DOE manages to spin it as improvement, and media repeats that info with no real analysis. Those of us with a interest have to dig deep to find the truth. I believe the truth will eventually come out, as it always does. Thanks to those of you who have the credentials and speak out for us. Yet it is disheartening to watch as education is being taken over by people who have no real stake in creating an educated citizenry. I feel helpless. What else can I do? I have spent many years working to improve education and building support systems for parents and students in poverty. I remain informed, I email my legislators, I speak out at district meetings along with my fellow administrators. I return to school and do my best to implement mandates in a way that doesn’t harm students or teachers. Some of it is out of my control ( VAM) because it is state law. States will never refuse the huge sums of federal money that come with the strings attached. Those strings are the very things that have removed local control that was the original foundation of public education. As Diane tells us…follow the money.
“telling the truth about the real data”. Most of that “real data” to which you refer is a chimera, ” un duende”, “vain and illusory”. Please, in order to understand why I continually harp on the “the data is invalid” please read and understand Noel Wilson’s “Educational Standards and the Problem of Error” found at:
http://epaa.asu.edu/ojs/article/view/577
http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/newsletters/0216_brown_education_loveless
This report from Brookings Institute is interesting. What are your thoughts?
Bridget,
I tried downloading it from your link and it doesn’t work. I’m going to try to find it on the site. Haven’t found it yet. Any suggestions?
Thanks,
Duane
Sorry, it works for me. Try searching: How well are American students learning? Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings Institute. 2012 Report. Let me know if you can’t find it and I’ll try again. Interested in hearing other opinions.
It may be my computer/server, I’m using Firefox and generally have good luck. I’ll have to do it later as I’m getting ready to go pick tomatoes. Look for a response later today or tomorrow. Thanks for the info!
I still haven’t been able to get it open, I tried a number of different things from various angles and can’t get to it. Could you email me an attachment with it? dswacker@centurytel.net
Thanks!