Is there a Common Core?

02/2015 Filed in: Diversity | Education Reform

I oppose Common Core outright, and here is why…

Common Core has been accepted by nearly every state. In a recent Washington Post article, former Secretary of Education William Bennett argues that Common Core is a good idea; it provides a common benchmark that allows states and nations to meaningfully compare academic achievement. Further, he argues that because it began at a state level and is not mandated by the Federal government, then it does not interfere with local educational control. Bennett argues that a look at the Common Core standards proves that they are rather benign.

Yet, I still believe they should be opposed. Why? Regardless of how benign the standards seem to be, they have a massive tendency toward centralization. ANY standards assumed to be necessary to every child's education and detailed enough to be a source of national and international tests goes far towards defining what and how every child is taught. Even it the standards seem benign, how much diversity is overlooked? What will our country look like if all children are eventually taught to the same test?

Common Core centralizes. It says, "You should teach this, and not that." Does the acceptance by governors make it a local decision? Does even the election of governors and school board members make education "local". No. Ultimately, any Common Core standards and mandates are made by a few people, and there is no group of people who should be given the power to shape the education of every child in America… whatever their motives or ends.

The wise recognize that choosing to do any good thing generally requires choosing not to do other good things. Even if the standards of Common Core seem good, are they the best standards for the education of every child? Best is a ideological decision to be made only by parents who know and love their children - not by elitist educators or bureaucrats.