Lost in the din over health care reform was a little-noticed news item about a development that will have far-reaching consequences for the American educational system.  On March 10th, the National Governors’ Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers, after months of secret sessions, released a proposal for a uniform set of national K-12 academic standards.  The intent of these standards is to replace the hodge-podge of state and local standards that range from mediocre to first-class.  It is an attempt to counter the lowering of standards that resulted from the No Child Left Behind law (NCLB), and to address the steady decline of America’s standing among the educational systems of other industrialized nations.

The establishment of national standards is one part of a major overhaul to correct the shortcomings of NCLB, but is still based on the flawed thinking of the original bill.  It is tempting to characterize this as a “big government takeover,” but the truth is that our approach to educational reform, at all levels of government as well as in the private sector, is misguided and doomed to failure.  There are many reasons we should not adopt national academic standards.  Here are a few points to consider.

1. There is no correlation between national standards and academic achievement.  It is often cited that 8 of the 10 top scoring countries have national standards, but the same is true of 8 of the 10 lowest performing countries.  More standards will mean more student failure.
2. National standards will lead to national testing and a national curriculum.  This is a step toward a one-size-fits-all approach which produces neither excellence nor equality.  From the Associated Press, “Already, the federal government has opened bidding for $350 million to work on new national tests that would be given to students in states that adopt the national standards.”
3. National standards will only strengthen the relentless drive to push academics into preschool and kindergarten, where they don’t belong.  The current proposal calls for kindergarten children to “read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.”  This completely contradicts what research tells us about child development in the early years, and the importance of play-based activity.
4. The proposed standard focuses only on English and Math.  We have already seen the disaster of this emphasis from NCLB.  Schools continue to put less effort into the arts, science, history, foreign language, and physical education.
5. The proposals are driven by economics.  Their justification is couched in terms like, “success in the global economy,” and “America’s competitive edge.”  The place of education to develop character, critical thinking, and to equip young people with the tools to be responsible citizens and lead fulfilling lives is no longer part of the discussion.

Everyone agrees that students deserve a high quality education.  This is not the same as every student receiving the same education.  Each individual is different and does not learn in the same way or at the same rate.  We need to change the educational debate away from the ideas of standardized testing and accountability.  Finland can serve as our example.  According to internationally recognized assessments, Finland has one of the most successful education programs in the world, yet relies little on national standards or testing.  Their approach allows for more local freedom on curriculum, keeps children in play-based activities until age seven, and puts more emphasis on training and supporting teachers.  The American education system needs a major overhaul.  It will not be achieved by doing more of what already does not work.

 

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Your Turn. Tell us what you thought about this article:

Responses

Great, especially the part about early childhood education and allowing the child to learn at her or his own pace and ability. We need creative minds, not simply children who know basic math and are able to read.

Ken Hougland
Claremont, CA

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Thanks for spreading the word about the Common Core Standards and how they will hurt, and not help, our children. Your points are ringing true in my ears! (I am an early childhood educator and a parent of young children.)

Geralyn Bywater McLaughlin
New York

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I am completing the last few days of my MA in education as we speak. The nationalization of education has done nothing to help student achievement. As local schools are ever more under pressure to meet national standards, there is less time for educational differentiation, variety, and reaching out to different kinds of learners with creative and engaging activities...everyone is too busy "teaching to the test," because its the only recognized measure of educational success.

If states go rogue and attempt to de-stress national standards (NCLB), they are threatened with diminished or eliminated federal funding, which can easily lead to proration in poorer states or states that have re-allocated funds that might otherwise have been used for education.

Most states, municipalities, and families are deeply concerned about education at the local level.  But, as with many federal programs, dependency on the federal government leads to individual inaction.  I think one possible solution is to get the federal government out of state and local education (gradually and by degrees).  If we eliminate the federal presence from education, states and municipalities will be put back into the position of being solely responsible for the education of their children.  Really, there is no Constitutional mandate requiring (or even permitting) federal participation in local education.  Its like so many other things - its here and we simply accept it as given. 

Independence requires and usually leads to self-sufficiency and resourcefulness.  I think states and communities would show themselves to be pretty strong advocates for education in the absence of big government oversight...its time to give it back to them.

JSL