Maine and National Standards

Maine Voices: Maine should think twice about adopting national educational testing

The public has only until Friday to comment to the state about the Common Core State Standards.

Forecaster Forum: Connecting the dots in public education

 

By Beth Schultz

Common Core State Standards, Common Core, and Partnership for 21st Century Learning

This past week my colleagues pointed me to a Video about a new initiative in New Brunswick, Canada, which uses the Partnership of 21st Learning framework.



Pearson Foundation created this next video to describe the approach.



Maine joined the Partnership in 2007. The Stategic Council members can be found here. Note that Microsoft is one of them and that Pearson is a major influence.

Okay, now it starts to get interesting. This week Common Core, an organization not to be confused with the Common Core State Standards group, although Fordham Foundation seems to be connected with both, has issued the Common Core Curriculum Maps which are based on the new CCSS.  Find the donors here. Note that Gates Foundation is a major contributor.

Now it starts to get very, very interesting.  It seems that Common Core has been slamming the Partnership for 21st Skills for the past year, bringing out lots of big guns, including Diane Ravitch and a number of well-known commentators who seem to support a more classical education.

Interesting stuff . . . the culture wars continue, but Gates/Microsoft and Pearson seem to be supporting both sides.

New Brunswick seems to have sided with the P21 approach.  What should Maine do?

Any thoughts?  Which approach do you prefer?  Or is there a middle ground?

Should Maine Adopt CCSS?

 MPBN: "New Learning Standards in the Works for Maine Students"


Proposed Rule Change for Adoption of Common Core Standards

INFORMATIONAL LETTER: 10 POLICY CODE: ILB
To: Superintendents of Schools
From: Angela Faherty Ph.D, Acting Commissioner
Date: August 2, 2010
RE: Proposed Rule Change for Adoption of Common Core Standards

The Department of Education is proposing an amendment to Chapter 131: The Maine Federal, State and Local Accountability Standards, a Major Substantive Rule of the Department of Education to include the Common Core State Standards in English language arts and mathematics for kindergarten to grade 12, with implementation to begin in 2012-13.

The proposed change is being made pursuant to PL 2009, Chapter 647, which revised state statute to permit Maine’s standards to include a core of standards in English language arts and mathematics for kindergarten to grade 12 established in common with other states and authorized the Commissioner of Education to adopt them, pending final approval by the Legislature.

Maine has a long history as a leader in rigorous standards and assessments and the adoption of the Common Core standards for English language arts and mathematics is the next logical step. The Maine Learning Results standards were first adopted in 1997 and later revised and re-adopted in 2007, each with significant statewide educator involvement and input. A similar process was used in the development of the Common Core standards. Maine educators and Maine Department of Education staff participated significantly in the development and review of the Common Core Standards. We have made clear that Maine would not adopt any standards that are less rigorous than the ones already in place. As a Department we are confident that the Common Core Standards will reflect what students need for success in post-secondary education and careers.

The proposed rule was filed today, August 2, 2010. The Secretary of State will post the rulemaking notice on August 11, 2010. The Department will hold a public hearing on August 30, 2010 in room 500 of the Cross State Office Building from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. The public comment period will begin on August 11 and end on September 10, 2010.

The proposed amendments are available on line at: http://www.maine.gov/education/rulechanges.htm . Hard copies and additional information may be obtained by contacting Jaci Holmes at 207-624-6669 or jaci.holmes@maine.gov .

Question:  Was there really significant educator input to the CCSS?  What do you think?  

See these Ohanian post:    1    2

Also see these posts.

Gates, CCSS, RttT & Continuing to Follow the Money

Huffington Post: The Most Dangerous Man in America

Business Week: Bill Gates' School Crusade

Education News; Corporate Role in Common Core Standards Ought to Be Exposed: Who appointed Bill Gates Emperor of Education?

Washington Post: Gates Foundation Playing Pivotal Role in Changes for Education System

Washinton Post: Bill Gates' Troubling Involvement with School Reform

Schools Matter: Rotten to the Common Core: When Will Parents and Teacher Revolt? 

Rethinking Schools: Keeping Public Schools Public: Testing Companies Mine for Gold

Marion Brady: Education Reform: An Ignored Problem, and a Proposal

"The most useful thing Congress and state departments of education can do is abandon authoritarian, centralizing initiatives and legislation that dictate what’s taught. By propping up an obsolete, dysfunctional curriculum, they’re making a very bad situation much worse.  ~ Marion Brady, Truthout, June 25, 2010

"The 'standards and accountability' education reform effort began in the 1980s at the urging of leaders of business and industry. The reform message preached by Democrats, Republicans, and the mainstream media is simple. 1. America's schools are, at best, mediocre. 2. Teachers deserve most of the blame. 3. As a corrective, rigorous subject-matter standards and tests are essential. 4. Bringing market forces to bear will pressure teachers to meet the standards or choose some other line of work.

Competition - student against student, teacher against teacher, school against school, state against state, nation against nation - will yield the improvement necessary for the United States to finish in first place internationally."  ~ Marion Brady, Truthout. 

Read the rest of the article.

Clipart Credit

Follow the Money . . .

Who controls education in the United States of America?

"This group of very rich people ignored this body of research that shows that the single most powerful factor in education gaps is poverty and not standardized testing.

Did they forget that the United States has the second highest rate of children in poverty of any industrialized country in the world?" ~  Cindy Lutenbacher, ajc . . .  READ MORE

Poverty and Test Scores: A Critical Analysis ~ Orlich & Gifford, Phi Delta Kappan 10/20/06

Poverty and Education: Overview

Poverty and Learning Wiki

USAToday: More Than 1 in 5 Kids Live in Poverty