Teacher admits he helped write Common Core to

[Socio]

If this is not a good reason to privatize the educational system and get government, all government even local government out of it entirely I don't know what is.

[Wickian]

How does making math pathetically more complex than it needs to be fight "white privilege"?

[F3SS]

Common core is absurd. This guy is absurd. A self loathing weasel out to influence your children. I really don't get how this can end so called white privilege and with such a statement from an author I don't get how anyone could think anything other than what Socio said above. Common core math is unnecessary and confusing. I'm lost as to how it is supposed to encourage critical thinking as claimed. There are better ways to encourage critical thinking but math is math. It is what it is, was and always will be. Wtf is a number sentence?! I have an arithmetic book from the late 1800's on my book shelf and is every bit as useful and complete and straight forward as math ever was and ever needs to be. The only thing outdated about that book is the prices for goods and wages for workers they use in their problems. Math don't change!

Edited May 24, 2014 by F3SS

[spartan max2]

Dont get me wrong I am strongly against common core.

but I listened to the video and I didnt hear what your talking about? He said something along the lines of he thinks everyone should be able to read and that he felt he was overly privileged because he was white. It sounds like I would not agree with most of what this guy says but I really dont see what the title of the video is saying?

His words " to give kids an equal opportunity to learn how to read"

Edited May 24, 2014 by spartan max2

[F3SS]

I can't see the video for some reason but regardless, common core sucks and was written by agenda driven progs.

[Wickian]

If I ever need to help my nephew with math in the future(he's entering first grade) I fully intend to teach him the easy method, 10 - 5 = 5. Over complicating a math problem is a waste of time and in no way viable in the real world.

[Sir Wearer of Hats]

We have two types of Maths problems here in Oz, one where you have to filter out the extraneous garbage to get to the problem and one where you don't. The later is "number facts" and it's the stuff we learnt by rote and still astonishes kids that I can rattle off without thought my Times Tables. The former is the "I have seven oranges and three friends come around to play Call of Duty, how many pieces of orange does each player get after they finish their first match?" you get rid of the "flavour text" and you get to a problem about dividing up seven oranges equally amongst three people.

[F3SS]

We have two types of Maths problems here in Oz, one where you have to filter out the extraneous garbage to get to the problem and one where you don't. The later is "number facts" and it's the stuff we learnt by rote and still astonishes kids that I can rattle off without thought my Times Tables. The former is the "I have seven oranges and three friends come around to play Call of Duty, how many pieces of orange does each player get after they finish their first match?" you get rid of the "flavour text" and you get to a problem about dividing up seven oranges equally amongst three people.

2 & 1/3 oranges each?

[Mikko-kun]

You yankees are deep in your capitalist indoctrination. It takes just one example, you cherry-pick the kind of examples you like. My country has public education but we're not backrupt because of that, but because we loaned pooploads of monkey to Greece and other EU paperdrains. 40 billion monkeys wasted in the name of economical balance.

So I guess yeah, despite faring pretty well on international charts our students end up being retards who loan money to anyone who asks and privatize everything because that's what you in the USA do and USA is best. The moment we started to do things your way we started to suck. Our private healthcare is a joke: people abuse sick leaves and get practically free vacations while those with less money have to pay the doctor.

Do you understand what I'm saying with your private education background? I come from a public school, our public schools created people like the founder of Nokia, and a world peace nobelist precident who's been negotiating conflicts around the world.

Private or public doesn't matter, it's how you maintain the system. If you have a car and you maintain it badly, it breaks up. If you dont take care of your health, you break up and die sooner. That's what's happening to your public school system, if anything.

[F3SS]

You yankees are deep in your capitalist indoctrination. It takes just one example, you cherry-pick the kind of examples you like. My country has public education but we're not backrupt because of that, but because we loaned pooploads of monkey to Greece and other EU paperdrains. 40 billion monkeys wasted in the name of economical balance.

So I guess yeah, despite faring pretty well on international charts our students end up being retards who loan money to anyone who asks and privatize everything because that's what you in the USA do and USA is best. The moment we started to do things your way we started to suck. Our private healthcare is a joke: people abuse sick leaves and get practically free vacations while those with less money have to pay the doctor.

Do you understand what I'm saying with your private education background? I come from a public school, our public schools created people like the founder of Nokia, and a world peace nobelist precident who's been negotiating conflicts around the world.

Private or public doesn't matter, it's how you maintain the system. If you have a car and you maintain it badly, it breaks up. If you dont take care of your health, you break up and die sooner. That's what's happening to your public school system, if anything.

Are there no private schools in Finland? 9/10 people here, if not more, go to public schools. Besides, non of this has anything to do with Common Core.

[+and-then]

You yankees are deep in your capitalist indoctrination. It takes just one example, you cherry-pick the kind of examples you like. My country has public education but we're not backrupt because of that, but because we loaned pooploads of monkey to Greece and other EU paperdrains. 40 billion monkeys wasted in the name of economical balance.

So I guess yeah, despite faring pretty well on international charts our students end up being retards who loan money to anyone who asks and privatize everything because that's what you in the USA do and USA is best. The moment we started to do things your way we started to suck. Our private healthcare is a joke: people abuse sick leaves and get practically free vacations while those with less money have to pay the doctor.

Do you understand what I'm saying with your private education background? I come from a public school, our public schools created people like the founder of Nokia, and a world peace nobelist precident who's been negotiating conflicts around the world.

Private or public doesn't matter, it's how you maintain the system. If you have a car and you maintain it badly, it breaks up. If you dont take care of your health, you break up and die sooner. That's what's happening to your public school system, if anything.

If by "maintain" you mean throw money at the problem then you are ignorant of the topic. I seriously doubt there is another country anywhere that spends more money on a failed system. All we hear is "it's for the children" yet no accountability is acceptable after the $$ is spent and we still get substandard scores.

[Mikko-kun]

Oh it wasn't about public/private schools... okay. I think your schools are still more on the private side even if they were state-sponsored if you have those tuition fees, but that's another topic. The OP mentioned privatising public schools though. Our public schools have fared just fine for decades without the fees, what's the problem really on your end?

Nope, throwing money at them is not the solution, it's the problem. Unfair distribution of money creates motivational issues, and no I dont think everyone should get the same amount, but you should measure the individual effort and practical expertise in determining how much you get. A fair distribution of money and workload, and then supervising that teachers do their work and have the proper conditions to do their work.

So you have the same test for everybody, that's the common core as far as wikipedia says, so what's the problem with that? That people have equal opportunity? Did they scoff at that in the video or am I missing something?

[spartan max2]

Oh it wasn't about public/private schools... okay. I think your schools are still more on the private side even if they were state-sponsored if you have those tuition fees, but that's another topic. The OP mentioned privatising public schools though. Our public schools have fared just fine for decades without the fees, what's the problem really on your end?

Nope, throwing money at them is not the solution, it's the problem. Unfair distribution of money creates motivational issues, and no I dont think everyone should get the same amount, but you should measure the individual effort and practical expertise in determining how much you get. A fair distribution of money and workload, and then supervising that teachers do their work and have the proper conditions to do their work.

So you have the same test for everybody, that's the common core as far as wikipedia says, so what's the problem with that? That people have equal opportunity? Did they scoff at that in the video or am I missing something?

It kind of sounds like you started to argue against us before you fully understand what we are against?

My problem with the test is that no one really learns anymore they just get taught to pass the test. It is all centered around the test. Because if your schools average does better on the test then you get more funding from the government.

[Wickian]

It kind of sounds like you started to argue against us before you fully understand what we are against?

My problem with the test is that no one really learns anymore they just get taught to pass the test. It is all centered around the test. Because if your schools average does better on the test then you get more funding from the government.

Standardized tests where I used to live were absurdly easy. To graduate high school all they required you know is the very basic algebra and being able to read. Then again I grew up in Southern California, and not everyone knew English all that well.

[aztek]

Unfair distribution of money creates motivational issues,

in our corrupt system there is no such thing as fair anything, especially money distribution. that wrong assumption alone cancels your entire post,

[Mikko-kun]

Not ultimate perfect fairness, just fair enough for people to feel they actually get rewarded for good effort but dont get kicked in the balls if they have a bad day. To put things to perspective. Maybe you ment that though?

[J. K.]

"Critical thinking" is being dumped on our kids too early. They can't think critically without the proper tools, and I'm tired of getting thirteen-year-olds in my classes who can't read script, can't multiply, don't know what a verb is, and don't know what continent they live on. The politicians and businessmen need to get out of the educators' way and let us teach what the kids need.

Edited May 26, 2014 by J. K.

[F3SS]

"Critical thinking" is being dumped on our kids too early. They can't think critically without the proper tools, and I'm tired of getting thirteen-year-olds in my classes who can't read script, can't multiply, don't know what a verb is, and don't know what continent they live on. The politicians and businessmen need to get out of the educators' way and let us teach what the kids need.

Do you teach Common Core? If so, care to elaborate on it?

[aztek]

Not ultimate perfect fairness, just fair enough for people to feel they actually get rewarded for good effort but dont get kicked in the balls if they have a bad day. To put things to perspective. Maybe you ment that though?

dude you should see some sickos that work in our dept. of ed. and schools, mental problem is a huge problem here .among all walks of life. add corruption and you get a disaster, basically what our dept of ed is. you just can't compare yours to our, our is 1000 times worst.

[Sir Wearer of Hats]

"Critical thinking" is being dumped on our kids too early. They can't think critically without the proper tools, and I'm tired of getting thirteen-year-olds in my classes who can't read script, can't multiply, don't know what a verb is, and don't know what continent they live on. The politicians and businessmen need to get out of the educators' way and let us teach what the kids need.

It depends on HOW it's being taught, when I teach "critical thinking" to my five year olds, it's asking the famous Julius Sumner Miller question "Why is it so?" just a generic "reflex" question to wonder why something is the way it is/behaves the way it does/works the way it does.

Yes that usually means it's followed by me saying "why do you think?" or "lets look that up!" but there both good critical thinking techniques as well.

Nine times out of ten, it's me asking it rhetorically on their behalf, BUT they do trot it out from time to time.

[Rafterman]

"Critical thinking" is being dumped on our kids too early. They can't think critically without the proper tools, and I'm tired of getting thirteen-year-olds in my classes who can't read script, can't multiply, don't know what a verb is, and don't know what continent they live on. The politicians and businessmen need to get out of the educators' way and let us teach what the kids need.

No one is too young for critical thinking. It's in how it's being taught and what experience level students have with it before it's dumped on them in this new educational environment. There's nothing wrong with asking a student - of any age - WHY something is the way it is, but if you've never had an experience with anything other than something being correct simply because that's what the teacher/book/test says, then you're going to have problems.