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Actually, NewsBusters and TV Land, Higher Standards Aren’t From the Federal Government
The website NewsBusters recently highlighted an episode of TV Land’s comedy show “Teachers” and how much it showed that Common Core “sucks.” Unfortunately, neither the reporter nor show creators took much time to research the facts and just repeated some of the most common myths about high-quality assessments and standards.
First and foremost, NewsBusters and the show claim Common Core is a federally mandated program. This is simply not true. States have always been responsible for determining the best course of action for their students, and that’s especially true after the passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act.
More and more states (over 40 now) see the value in implementing higher standards, as do parents and teachers. Parents aren’t being “driven crazy” by the standards and assessments as NewsBusters insinuates, but rather they are calling for them. As for the website’s claim that higher standards don’t allow teachers to tailor their lesson plans for individual learning, that’s also not true. Setting high academic standards does not get in the way of creative teaching.
Most importantly, Newsbusters and the show creators fail to recognize the data showing that high standards and high-quality assessments are working across the country. Among the more than 40 states that have adopted and maintained high standards, the vast majority have seen proficiency rates improve – especially in those students that have had high standards in math their whole academic careers.
If Newsbusters claims “sometimes truth is stranger than fiction,” we argue, “the truth is always stronger than fiction.”
About the Collaborative for Student Success
At our core, we believe leaders at all levels have a role to play in ensuring success for K-12 students. From ensuring schools and teachers are equipped with the best materials to spotlighting the innovative and bold ways federal recovery dollars are being used to drive needed changes, the Collaborative for Student Success aims to inform and amplify policies making a difference for students and families.
To recover from the most disruptive event in the history of American public schools, states and districts are leveraging unprecedented resources to make sure classrooms are safe for learning, providing students and teachers with the high-quality instructional materials they deserve, and are rethinking how best to measure learning so supports are targeted where they’re needed most.