How Common Core Should Be Rolled Out
3 min read
After attending the Portland Public Schools Common Core parent event, I've been thinking about the event, the people tasked to staff it, and the split between the Common Core standards, what our kids will be taught as a result of the adoption of these standards, and parent and community frustration at how these standards have been adopted.
One piece of feedback that I hope that people in Portland Public School District are hearing is that people want to talk about the process by which the standards were adopted. At the event last night, there was no outlet or opportunity to discuss concerns with the standards themselves. As a result, curriculum people were barraged with policy questions.
In rolling out Common Core, the district should have a series of events that focus on sample instruction within the classrooms. Focus on what kids will be doing. For what it's worth, this should be happening regardless of Common Core - it's good parent outreach, and it's a good way for the district to remain connected to the communities within it.
At a separate event, the district should bring in higher level admins who played more of a decision making role in the details of the Common Core implementation. While the parents who attended the event last night were a self selected group, there was a clear sense among parents that they did not have a voice or an opportunity to be heard. I suspect that a great deal of frustration could be reduced if the district made time to have an open conversation where they heard concerns. I would not anticipate that parental frustration will be reduced by ignoring it.
For parents who are frustrated, you also have options. Interestingly, one of the videos shown at the Portland Common Core event last night was produced by New York State, and featured New York State Education Commissioner John King. New York State has an active Opt Out movement, and the movement has been galvanized in part by the heavy handed, ignore/bully opposition approach of Commissioner King.
Oregon doesn't have a comparable opt out movement, but this page of talking points found on the PPS web site (pdf download), and attached to this post, seems to indicate that, at the district level, they are thinking about responses to opting out. The PPS document "is intended as a support to principals and teachers to understand State of Oregon requirements and our practices around testing." The talking points include responses to parents who exempt their students from testing. This document is geared for the OAKS tests. Interestingly, the document defines one student talking to another student about opting out as potential bullying. The document also notes that students who opt out of tests count against a school's overall test average - this seems like an arbitrary statistical decision, and a good spot for opt-out advocates to begin work.
I hope that as the Common Core rollout moves forward, there are frank, open, and candid discussions between the district, administrators, teachers, students, and parents. The Common Core rollout is stumbling forward, but the one thing that unites all stakeholders is a desire for an excellent education within a strong public school system.
