This past Friday the Secretary of Education Arne Duncan came under fire after some comments he made in response to the backlash against the educational reforms known as the Common Core; a set of standards that have been adopted by 45 states... including Rhode Island.
Duncan said that white suburban moms oppose the Common Core because they are realizing their children are not as brilliant as they thought, and their schools are not as good as they thought. Duncan has come under criticism for the racial undertones in his comments... The backlash against Duncan has been sever. The so-called "white suburban moms" have begun to respond claiming that they are not delusional about the "brilliance" or their children, they oppose Common Core because of its "one size fits all" philosophy and emphasis on high stakes testing. In addition, non-white parents have written to Duncan to let him know that they hate the Common Core as well, letting him know this is not a racial issue. The point Duncan seems to miss is that some do not agree with the Common Core philosophy not because they fear the results of the test, but that the standards themselves are random and subjective. The fact of the matter is that the Common Core is unproven and it very well may be a partial savior of the educational system, but we need to recognize that it also may not be. In ten years we may look back and say, "Thank heavens for the Common Core!" We may also say, "What a disaster the Common Core was." Only time will tell... Thoughts?
Eddie Cascella- Period 1
11/18/2013 08:46:11 pm
I do not think a high stakes test is good for children in school. What if you are a bad test taker? The Common Core should not be based on a high stakes test. Also, the one size fits all idea is not a good idea either. Some students are smarted than others, so they should have all different levels of difficulty.
Karyssa Period 5
11/18/2013 10:32:26 pm
I think this is a bad idea because not everyone passes test and a lot people get nervous and when they take a test they forget what they were suppose to know for the test. Not all kids meet the same level of difficulty and that wouldn't be fair for the kids to take it and more than half the class fails and the others pass or if more then half the class passes and the others fail because they didn't understand what that question was saying or they didn't understand how to do it.
Katelyn Martino Period 1
11/18/2013 10:43:23 pm
I personally do not like the idea of the Common Core standards. if it based on standardized tests it is not a good idea, there are students in schools that know the information but do not do very well on tests which are the grades that really count. And some students know information they dont need to because they do not want to apply themselves to the schoool work.
Lenita LaRoche
11/18/2013 10:47:53 pm
Chelsea Lavallee Period 1
11/18/2013 10:51:02 pm
I find some aspects of the Common Core useless and irritating. It is true that the children may not be as smart as their parents thought they were, and the schools are DEFINITELY not as good as they thought. The schools are teaching children things that we do not remember or understand and our test grades may make us seem less smart than we have the potential to be, just because we don't understand one topic or the wording of a question. Some people are just bad test-takers. I think Duncan was out of line though to say that racial comment. People of any race can have those thoughts, not just white suburban moms. That has nothing to do with feelings on the Common Core. I think it is a good idea to have one so we learn certain things, but I think they rely too much on huge tests and information that we will never need to know in life. Grades on big tests to not show a student's full potential. I feel like we need a Common Core, but it needs to be less strict when it comes to big tests and it should focus on more important things that will actually help students get somewhere in life.
Nicole Gauthier Period 3
11/18/2013 11:23:28 pm
Arne Duncan’s phrasing and undertone is undoubtedly clumsy. Mothers could complain that their children are performing worse academically due to the program, but not for the reason that Duncan provides. The Common Core program, in my opinion as according to my subjection, has little structure. It champions the memorization of facts and figures to pass high risk standardized tests. However, many people are coming to realize that it is more important to understand why something is and comes to be than just it comes to be. Parents want their children to succeed and they want what is best for them. The non-white parents writing to Duncan prove that they want their children to be nurtured intellectually and not hindered by monotonous facts inapplicable to real life.
Matthew Coughlin period 4
11/19/2013 09:45:29 pm
I do not like this idea at all. I say this because a lot of people including myself are not the best test takers. So, that being said if this test was to count for so much of a student's grade then it could have a very negative affect because the student could feel the pressure and do bad on the test, therefore doing bad on the test and possibly failing the course.
Jeffrey Perreault P1
11/20/2013 12:45:41 am
I do not think that some states should be adopting this Common Core. First of all, some people do not like this, some moms are finding the real intelligence of their kids is lower than they thought, and the main reason is that is unproven. They are adopting something that may be a savor or failure. I think it will not help because it is not a valid thing yet.
Joseph Tocco Period 1
11/20/2013 09:15:37 am
Well, I think that the "white suburban moms" comment is just plain hysterical. But I believe that the whole common core thing isn't a bad thing, but shouldn't be based on everything. Every kid/teen learns differently and have different highs and lows. Some kids are amazing at doing tests and could ace them easily while other kids just don't do well at all. I think the common core could be used in the curriculum, but only at certain points.
Zachory Saucier Period 4
11/21/2013 02:21:14 am
I think that she might not of knew what she was saying. Maybe it sounded different in her head. But thats not the case. You are a public figure. You should not be saying stuff like this in speeches or even with friends. Being a public figure, she should pay more attention to what she was saying, and apolagize for what she said.
Ryan Agnew Period 1
11/21/2013 04:38:12 am
I often question the common core. I do not feel as though I am learning the content of the curriculum but rather how to quickly memorize it and then forget it when the next set of information. We should not be graded on tests of memorization but rather the amount of completed work we do, the effort we put into learning the information, and whether or not we understand it by writing an essay or even just being asked about the material.
Anneliese period 3
11/21/2013 05:29:47 am
Duncan's comment about white suburban moms was unwise, as well as upsetting to parents who have children that struggle in school. I believe that while Common Core may or may not work, it is important to see if it works before condemning it. There will always be students who perform extremely high, and students that struggle. The best type of school system would be to use methods that will help all students learn at the pace that is right for them, at the same time challenging their learning abilities so they learn to work hard. Test taking is something that many students in the country struggle with, and if the focus of the new system is testing, there should be more done to accommodate the students who need help instead of outright failing them for poor test grades.
Griffin Doyle period 1
11/21/2013 10:38:20 am
The Common Core idea does not seem like a well thought out plan. Not every single student will do well on the standardized tests. A large amount of students are not good test takers and may feel enormous pressure to succeed. Also, the subject matter of the tests may not interest some students so they will not feel motivated to read the information. The potential problems with Common Core do not involve any type of race issues. Duncan's comment about "white suburban moms," not accepting that their kids may not be brilliant, is ridiculous. Time will tell the results of Common Core whether they are positive or negative.
Patrick Mascoli- Period 3
11/22/2013 06:43:12 am
Common Core will never work in my opinion solely because of its one size fits all philosophy. It is unjust and ridiculous to have every student in even just one state take the same assessment, let alone 45 states. Every person doesn't learn the same way, learn the same things, or learn at the same pace. This makes the standardized tests incredibly easy for some while incredibly difficult for others. I know many students who are very intelligent but happen to be poor test takers for whatever reason. Common Core hurts these kids exponentially. In my opinion tests should be specific to a class and not a state/nation. This way everyone would be on a more even playing field. Also the comments by Duncan were extremely ignorant and uncalled for.
Stephanie Period 1
11/22/2013 07:35:07 am
I disagree with the common core testing. I think the the education system needs to find a way to examine students and test them on their knowledge without actually testing them. Part of the reason that some students do so poorly on tests is because their nervous or because the questions on the test are asked in such and odd way that the student doesn't understand it. The pressures of taking a test stress certain people out and cause them to fail or not perform as well as they could've. I think the parents are right to disagree with common core.
Kalum Alldredge period 1
11/23/2013 01:26:27 am
I feel like the common core is a terrible idea, I mean when the head of the he plan makes racial comments about the people who disagree with him. I mean if the president of a country acted like this he would get no respect, and no one would take him seriously so I personally feel like the "heat" that he's under is fair, and that he deserves it. Also the Common Core its self makes no sense because some people are great students but bad test takers, so it's not fair for everyone to be graded so heavily on tests.
Hannah Bouressa period 1
11/23/2013 02:33:50 am
I think the common core is a bad idea. It should not be taken as seriously as it is because many students are bad test takers and get stressed out so easily it affects the results of the common core. Students should have to take tests to make sure they understand the material they are learning but to give students a long test on information they may not fully understand or forgot about should not be allowed. The people who create the common core should give all the topics on it to give to teachers so they can go over it with the students sometime before the students take this test.
Victoria Piperata per3
11/23/2013 02:50:23 am
I completely disagree with Common Core because not everyone learns the same way, and not everyone is a good test taker. In order to help students really learn there should be more room to express yourself. Just having everyone take tests is like moving backwards.
Kelsey Rafferty Period 5
11/23/2013 03:30:24 am
hate the idea of the Common
Kelsey Rafferty
11/23/2013 03:32:03 am
I hate the idea of the common core. Most kids are really good in school and most kids can do bad. You can have your best student take a test and then have them completely fail it. And then you can have your worst kid class take the test and he can ace it.
Deveny period 3
11/23/2013 07:05:48 am
I think most of us can agree that standardized tests and most of the school system we participate in is not the most effective. Every student learns differently and it is not fair to judge them based on an umbrella standard. I hope there will be changes in the future for the sake of kids in school who do not do well on standardized tests and the system in general.
Sara P.3
11/23/2013 07:09:45 am
I'm curious to see how the popular opinion on common core changes in the future. It is obvious that students, parents, and teachers all look down on this idea. Even I fail to see the benefits of common core based on what I've experienced and seen at school. On another note, Duncan had no right to voice his opinion in that manner. It takes an incredibly naive person to believe that an entire education system would only have a negative impact on one racial stereotype. His comment was clearly offensive and it surprises me that he thought almost nothing of it.
Bryana Mullin period 1
11/23/2013 07:51:53 am
I hate the idea of the Common Core. Many students get very stressed out when they take tests and it affects their scores. They may be extremely smart but you would never know if they are bad test takers and all you look at are their test scores. Most Common Core tests are on things the student has learned a while ago and doesn't remember, or the question is worded weird and the student cannot understand it. I think that they need to come up with a different way to test students to see what they know. Maybe just changing the name would help. A lot of students get scared when they are having a test but not a quiz. And a name like Common Core sounds scary and like it is a really big test. I do not like the idea of the Common Core and I think that they need to come up with some other way to test students.
Ellen McDonnell pd 3
11/23/2013 08:24:28 am
I think that this comment was a little bit comical, but I don't think that Duncan understands the problems with the educational reform. The problem is that most parents and kids are not pleased with the common core system. Common core has not improved our education system thus far, and it is going to require many changes before it does.
Akeel Rehman Period 5
11/23/2013 09:09:41 am
I think that Mr. Duncan should have not said what he said. He single out a group intentionally. He gave a childish answer to thr public about the common core standards. There should be someone else in charge.
Henry Cascella Period 3
11/23/2013 12:51:40 pm
A high level bureaucrat certainly should not be making a comment like that. Its racial undertones are extremely evident, and there is no way that he could not have known that when he said it. I also agree with some of the grievances the "white suburban moms" have in regards to the Common Core. Education should not be governed by a one size fits all philosophy, some students learn differently, and should not be penalized by that. I also have issues with the emphasis on standardized testing. If a student gets an A+ in a class and then doesn't do very well on the test, they shouldn't be so severely penalized. Since they did well in the class, they obviously understood the material, and they may just not be good test takers.
Yanyelle Torres
11/23/2013 12:59:20 pm
I aggree with parents saying that the common core's "one size fits all" approach on education isn't effective. Everyone's brain works differently and learns and gains experience from looking and seeing things in their own way, common core ignores this and expects students to see and think in only black and white, and to preform only in the common core way of thinking and learning. By putting more pressure into things such as standardized tests and on one way thinking and learning students are not getting the benefit of thinking and learning in their own individual way. Which in the long run can hurt thier own problem solving skills. Comments are closed.
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