A Parent Letter on Common Core

There has been much controversy surrounding the newly rolled out Common Core standards (also called the “State Standards Initiative”) in public education. It is lauded by some as more advanced than previous standards and criticized by others as too formulaic, and nearly 1/4 of the states are exploring the possibility of opting out of the implementation.

This initiative might just be the biggest waste of taxpayer money the government has ever been engaged in. States have spent billions of dollars over the years determining what standards and tests work best for their students, only to now have to spend billions more to replace those systems with a government-mandated, nationwide curriculum.

One concerned parent (@suzibasterd) drafted this letter to her local Tennessee newspaper, expressing her thoughts on Common Core. She shared the letter (which has yet to be published) on Facebook.

If you have not done so already, take a peek at the standards. The English Language Arts Standards claim this:

The Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects (“the Standards”) are the culmination of an extended, broad-based effort to fulfill the charge issued by the states to create the next generation of K–12 standards in order to help ensure that all students are college and career ready in literacy no later than the end of high school.

But even this statement implies that the federal government sees itself as answer to all challenges facing individual states. Even worse, it implies that only Father Government knows what is best for our children.