Opinion
Standards & Accountability Letter to the Editor

Common-Core Marketing Has Trumped Debate

October 09, 2012 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

To the Editor:

Having left parents utterly in the dark ...

• When the Common Core State Standards were being written,

• When they were being adopted in unseemly haste by state politicos hungry for federal Race to the Top loot, and

• When provisions were being made for local amendment of the standards when their flaws and shortcomings become painfully evident. (Oops, there are no such provisions.)

Now, powerful national interest groups pushing the common core are producing tons of slick videos and print materials intended to convince parents just how wonderfully these one-size-fits-all standards will serve their children (“Standards Backers Seek Out Support of Parents,” Sept. 26, 2012).

The progressive Alfie Kohn may differ on many issues from the conservative Heritage Foundation, but they are both correct in asserting that a slick marketing campaign is no substitute for the honest debate that should have occurred long before the Common Core State Standards initiative was a fait accompli. And experienced classroom teachers should have been in on those deliberations as well.

Robert Holland

Senior Fellow for Education Policy

The Heartland Institute

Chicago, Ill.

A version of this article appeared in the October 10, 2012 edition of Education Week as Common-Core Marketing Has Trumped Debate

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
The Future of the Science of Reading
Join us for a discussion on the future of the Science of Reading and how to support every student’s path to literacy.
Content provided by HMH
Mathematics K-12 Essentials Forum Helping Students Succeed in Math
Student Well-Being Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: The Power of Emotion Regulation to Drive K-12 Academic Performance and Wellbeing
Wish you could handle emotions better? Learn practical strategies with researcher Marc Brackett and host Peter DeWitt.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Standards & Accountability State Accountability Systems Aren't Actually Helping Schools Improve
The systems under federal education law should do more to shine a light on racial disparities in students' performance, a new report says.
6 min read
Image of a classroom under a magnifying glass.
Tarras79 and iStock/Getty
Standards & Accountability What the Research Says More than 1 in 4 Schools Targeted for Improvement, Survey Finds
The new federal findings show schools also continue to struggle with absenteeism.
2 min read
Vector illustration of diverse children, students climbing up on a top of a stack of staggered books.
iStock/Getty
Standards & Accountability Opinion What’s Wrong With Online Credit Recovery? This Teacher Will Tell You
The “whatever it takes” approach to increasing graduation rates ends up deflating the value of a diploma.
5 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Standards & Accountability Why a Judge Stopped Texas from Issuing A-F School Ratings
Districts argued the new metric would make it appear as if schools have worsened—even though outcomes have actually improved in many cases.
2 min read
Laura BakerEducation Week via Canva  (1)
Canva