Common Core

The debate over Common Core seems to have resurfaced lately. I'm not an educator, nor am I at a school level which falls under the Common Core curriculum, but here are just some honest thoughts on the debate, based on personal experience.

I've looked at sample questions and standards, and yeah, they're harder than they were when I was in 3rd grade. There's extraneous information, and arithmetic on the kindergarten standards.

Yup, the standards are more intense. But these arguments that they're too hard? Too hard compared to what? The old standards? The fact that 1/3 of NY students, who are accustomed to the looser standards, didn't pass? I call BS.

Adults argue that even they would be confused by some of the questions on the standardized testing for Common Core. Now tell me again, why is that an argument against it? It's not that the questions are unfair. They're not even particularly confusing. They just require soem time and thinking. Isn't the fact that adults can't think their way through a problem more reason for Common Core?

There's a pretty controversial sample 3rd grade math problem (one which prompted the argument above) going around. 54 apples placed uniformly on 9 trays. If each of three classes gets an equal number of trays, how many apples does each class get?

Sure, it seems wordy. You really just need to divide 54 by 3. But that's not all that's being tested - they're checking critical reasoning and logic too. The information about the trays is completely extraneous. Is that too much to expect from 3rd graders? Perhaps, but should it be? We have so many *adults* who can't distinguish between unnecessary and essential information, and that's such a critical part of being an efficient worker.

Are our kids too delicate to handle some pressure and expectation? A little bit of criticism and a dose of harsh reality? There's the whole concern that expecting too much would turn kids off from learning.

I remember my parents requiring me to know my times tables up through 12 in first grade. I remember that period being possibly the worst math-related period of my life, even including the horror that was multivariable calculus this past year. I cried night after night at my mom's bedside, unable to tell her what 9x7 was. But math remained my favorite subject until high school, when I decided I liked chemistry/biology more.

Should we be afraid to fail students? To give them a 30% and tell them that no, sorry, you aren't superb?

I say no. Getting good grades in elementary school continued through the rest of my education. From an early point, it became my identity. I became defined by test scores and report cards. I never failed; if I failed, I was a failure. I remember crying all through break during middle school after a math test which I hadn't had time to finish. A math test which, ultimately, I got a B+ on. I was so dependent on good grades to tell me I was worthwhile, because that seemed to be the case in elementary school, that without them, I was worthless. Failing something in elementary school would have been hard, yes, but it would have allowed me to see something which I do now, but which was concealed from me during my entire public school education: I am not defined by my grades. Failing a test shouldn't be such an earth-shattering, confidence-crippling event.

And sure, people can argue that I'm from a Chinese family, that I undoubtedly grew up with pressure and an emphasis on doing well in school. But what's wrong with that? If America's going to complain about Asian students forming a majority of the population at many good colleges, or that Chinese immigrants are flooding into the workforce... Why are we against pushing our students to do better?

You can argue that I'm "an Ivy kid," obviously I would have done well under Common Core anyways... And that might be true. But there's no reason other people can't either. I was easily one of the top students in my class every year, but it never took much effort. I grew up thinking that everyone who took calculus was a genius. But I did, and did pretty well in the class even, but believe me when I say I am far from it. So why do we have that mindset?

Common Core is hard, yes. Students will fail. They might be discouraged. But kids are much more resilient than we may imagine, and eventually, under stricter standards and by expecting more of our children, they'll acquire skills that many of the adults of today lack.