Introduction & Meeting Format

1 Part 1 ‐ What is Common Core

2 • Standards vs. Curricula

• One size fits all – Kindergarten

3 • Common Core proponents will say –“These are just standards the way teachers reach the standards is up to them.”

• Not exactly true…

4 The federal government paid $360,000,000 to two companies to write the CC assessments.

• Pearson –PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) • McGraw Hill –SBAC (Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium) http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer‐sheet/wp/2013/09/04/seven‐facts‐you‐should‐know‐about‐new‐common‐core‐tests/ http://www.prnewswire.com/news‐releases/smarter‐balanced‐assessment‐consortium‐selects‐ctbmcgraw‐hill‐to‐develop‐next‐generation‐of‐assessments‐to‐help‐schools‐meet‐new‐common‐core‐state‐standards‐147593455.html http://www.reading.org/general/Publications/blog/BlogSinglePost/rty/2012/03/01/SMARTER_Balanced_and_PARCC_to_Launch_Pearson_Technology_Readiness_Tool.aspx#.Utq9GLTTnSc http://www.ascd.org/common‐core/core‐connection/08‐08‐12‐questions‐arise‐with‐common‐assessment‐consortia.aspx • They are also the two largest companies writing CC curriculum 5 Bill Gates is the largest private donor to Common Core

$33 Million for the development of the standards http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/living‐in‐dialogue/2013/11/common_core_standards_ten_colo.html

6 Bill Gates 7/21/2009 National Conference of State Legislators https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtTK_6VKpf4

7 • “Identifying common standards is just the starting point. We’ll only know if this effort has succeeded when the curriculum and tests are lined to these standards.”

8 Bill Gates 9/21/13 Harvard How long will it take? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBHJ‐8Bch4E&feature=player_detailpage#t=2722 (45:00) http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer‐sheet/wp/2013/09/27/bill‐gates‐it‐would‐be‐great‐if‐our‐education‐stuff‐worked‐but/

9 • “It would be great if our ‘education stuff’ worked but that we won’t know for probably a decade.” • Common Core is the Biggest Proposed Change to education in our lifetime and we have to wait 10 years to see if it works. • CC is being rolled to 50,000,000 children in 45 44 states at the same time with out ever having been tested… • PBS said…”A major experiment is underway in American Public Education.” http://learningmatters.tv/blog/on‐pbs‐newshour/watch‐common‐core‐state‐standards‐part‐1‐teaching/11446/ http://learningmatters.tv/blog/on‐pbs‐newshour/watch‐common‐core‐part‐1/11446/ • What if it doesn’t work? 10 According to The Best Schools.org, “none of the top 50 best private day schools in America advertise they use CC”

http://deutsch29.wordpress.com/2014/03/31/whatever‐will‐we‐do‐if‐we‐dump‐common‐core/ http://www.thebestschools.org/blog/2013/04/30/50‐private‐day‐schools‐united‐states/

11 Part 2 ‐ How did the standards get written?

12 Three Steps • 1) Step One ‐ Two Work Groups: One ELA, One Math ‐ 29 people total, • STANDARDS WRITTEN BY 29 PEOPLE CALLED THE WORK GROUP ‐ 6 LEAD WRITERS (3 ELA, 3 MATH) BUT 4 “WROTE THE STANDARDS”

• 14 people on work group in English language arts the lead writers were David Coleman and Susan Pimentel, (even though Jim Patterson was the 3rd writing team member). No English professors or high school English teachers on ELA Work Group.

• 15 people on work group in math lead writers were Jason Zimba and Bill McCullum, (even though Phil Daro was the 3rd writing team member). • Of the 4 “lead writers” NONE ever taught K‐12. • Also, none of the other 25 were current K‐12 teachers • WHO WROTE STANDARDS… http://www.nga.org/cms/home/news‐room/news‐releases/page_2009/col2‐content/main‐content‐list/title_common‐core‐state‐standards‐development‐work‐group‐ and‐feedback‐group‐announced.html 13 Work Group 15 Members:

• Sara Clough, Director, Elementary and Secondary School Programs, Development, Education Division, ACT, Inc. • Phil Daro, Senior Fellow, America's Choice • Susan K. Eddins, Educational Consultant, Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (Retired) • Kaye Forgione, Senior Associate and Team Leader for Mathematics, Achieve • John Kraman, Associate Director, Research, Achieve • Marci Ladd, Mathematics Consultant, The College Board & Senior Manager and Mathematics Content Lead, Academic Benchmarks

• William McCallum, University Distinguished Professor and Head, Department of Mathematics, The University of Arizona &Mathematics Consultant, Achieve

• Sherri Miller, Assistant Vice President, Educational Planning and Assessment System (EPAS) Development, Education Division, ACT, Inc.

• Ken Mullen, Senior Program Development Associate—Mathematics, Elementary and Secondary School Programs, Development, Education Division, ACT, Inc. • Robin O'Callaghan, Senior Director, Mathematics, Research and Development, The College Board • Andrew Schwartz, Assessment Manager, Research and Development, The College Board • Laura McGiffert Slover, Vice President, Content and Policy Research, Achieve • Douglas Sovde, Senior Associate, Mathematics, Achieve

• Natasha Vasavada, Senior Director, Standards and Curriculum Alignment Services, Research and Development, The College Board

• Jason Zimba, Faculty Member, Physics, Mathematics, and the Center for the Advancement of Public Action, Bennington College and Cofounder, Student Achievement Partners 14 http://www.nga.org/cms/home/news‐room/news‐releases/page_2009/col2‐content/main‐content‐list/title_common‐core‐state‐standards‐development‐work‐group‐and‐feedback‐group‐announced.html English‐Language Arts Work Group 14 Members:

• Sara Clough, Director, Elementary and Secondary School Programs, Development, Education Division, ACT, Inc. • David Coleman, Founder, Student Achievement Partners • Sally Hampton, Senior Fellow for Literacy, America's Choice • Joel Harris, Director, English Language Arts Curriculum and Standards, Research and Development, The College Board • Beth Hart, Senior Assessment Specialist, Research and Development, The College Board • John Kraman, Associate Director, Research, Achieve • Laura McGiffert Slover, Vice President, Content and Policy Research, Achieve

• Nina Metzner, Senior Test Development Associate—Language Arts, Elementary and Secondary School Programs, Development, Education Division, ACT, Inc.

• Sherri Miller, Assistant Vice President, Educational Planning and Assessment System (EPAS) Development, Education Division, ACT, Inc. • Sandy Murphy, Professor Emeritus, University of California –Davis

• Jim Patterson, Senior Program Development Associate—Language Arts, Elementary and Secondary School Programs, Development, Education Division, ACT, Inc. • Sue Pimentel, Co‐Founder, StandardsWork; English Language Arts Consultant, Achieve

• Natasha Vasavada, Senior Director, Standards and Curriculum Alignment Services, Research and Development, The College Board • Martha Vockley, Principal and Founder, VockleyLang, LLC

http://www.nga.org/cms/home/news‐room/news‐releases/page_2009/col2‐content/main‐content‐list/title_common‐core‐state‐standards‐development‐work‐group‐and‐feedback‐group‐announced.html

15 • STANDARDS WRITTEN BEHIND CLOSED DOORS –no minutes were ever released

16 David Coleman is The Father of Common Core Here are his Qualifications Institute For Learning (IFL) 2011 http://vimeo.com/35318592

17 Coleman’s Response http://vimeo.com/35318592

18 2) Step two ‐ Two Feedback groups: One ELA, One for math ‐ 33 people total

• ONE K‐12 Teacher on Math feedback group • NO K‐12 Teacher on ELA feedback group

• Most were college professors • Some people were on more than one committee http://www.nga.org/cms/home/news‐room/news‐releases/page_2009/col2‐content/main‐content‐ list/title_common‐core‐state‐standards‐development‐work‐group‐and‐feedback‐group‐announced.html

19 Math Feedback Group

• George Andrews, The Pennsylvania State University, Evan Pugh Professor of Mathematics • , University of Michigan, Samuel Eilenberg Distinguished University Professor of Mathematics & Mathematics Education • David Bressoud, Macalester College, DeWitt Wallace Professor of Mathematics & President, Mathematical Association of America • John Dossey, Illinois State University, Distinguished University Professor of Mathematics Emeritus • Scott Eddins, Tennessee Department of Education, Mathematics Coordinator & President, Association of State Supervisors of Mathematics (ASSM) • Brian Gong, The National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment, Executive Director • Kenji Hakuta, Stanford University, Professor of Education • Roger Howe, Yale University, Professor of Mathematics • Henry S. Kepner, Jr., University of Wisconsin‐Milwaukee, Professor, Curriculum & Instruction and Mathematical Sciences • Suzanne Lane, University of Pittsburgh, Professor in the Research Methodology Program, School of Education • Robert Linn, University of Colorado, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, and Co‐Director of the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards and Student Testing (CRESST) • Jim Milgram, Stanford University, Professor of Mathematics, Emeritus, Department of Mathematics • Fabio Milner, School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, Arizona State University, Director, Mathematics for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education • Roxy Peck, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Associate Dean, College of Science and Mathematics and Professor of Statistics • Nora Ramirez, TODOS: Mathematics for ALL, President • William Schmidt, Michigan State University, College of Education, University Distinguished Professor • Uri Treisman, University of Texas, Professor of Mathematics and Public Affairs & Executive Director, Charles A. Dana Center • Vern Williams, Mathematics Teacher, HW Longfellow Middle School, Fairfax County, Virginia Public Schools • W. Stephen Wilson, Johns Hopkins University, Professor of Mathematics 20 ELA Feedback Group

• Peter Afflerbach, University of Maryland, Professor • Arthur Applebee, University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY) Distinguished Professor & Chair, Department of Educational Theory & Practice, School of Education • Mark Bauerlein, Emory University, Professor of English • Mary Bozik, University of Northern Iowa, Professor, Communication Studies • Don Deshler, University of Kansas, Williamson Family Distinguished Professor of Special Education & Director, Center for Research on Learning • Checker Finn, Fordham Institute Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University & President, Thomas B. Fordham Institute • Brian Gong, The National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment, Executive Director • Kenji Hakuta, Stanford University, Professor of Education • Carol Jago, University of California –Los Angeles, National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) President‐elect, California Reading and Literature Project • Jeanneine Jones, University of North Carolina – Charlotte, Professor • Michael Kamil, Stanford University, Professor, School of Education • Suzanne Lane, University of Pittsburgh, Professor in the Research Methodology Program, School of Education • Carol Lee, Northwestern University, Professor of Education and Social Policy • Robert Linn, University of Colorado, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, and Co‐Director of the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards and Student Testing (CRESST) • Dolores Perin, , Associate Professor of Psychology and Education • Tim Shanahan, University of Illinois at Chicago, Professor, Urban Education • Catherine Snow, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Patricia Albjerg Graham Professor • Doranna Tindle, Friendship Public Charter Schools, Instructional Performance Coach

21 3) Step 3 ‐ Validation (rubber stamp) Committee 29 (24 new people)

• Teachers • One K‐12 representing AFT (union) • One K‐12 representing NEA (union) • One other K‐12 teacher • No ECE or mental health professionals involved in the entire process

ONLY TWO MEMBERS ON VALIDATION COMMITTEE HAD EVER WRITTEN HIGH STATE (K‐12) STANDARDS • Dr. SANDRA STOTSKY ‐ ELA MASSACHUSETTS (+) • Dr. JAMES MILGRAM ‐ MATH CALIFORNIA (+)

• BOTH DR. STOTSKY AND DR. MILGRAM PLUS THREE OTHERS WOULD NOT SIGN OFF ON THE CCSS.

22 Stotsky Validation Committee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u168bk2lntI

23 Confidentiality Agreement

• Stotsky, “We had to sign a confidentiality agreement that we would not ever discuss what took place in the meeting itself.”

24 Validation Committee

• Bryan Albrecht, President, Gateway Technical College, Kenosha, Wisconsin • Arthur Applebee, Distinguished Professor, Center on English Learning & Achievement, School of Education, University at Albany, SUNY • Sarah Baird, 2009 Arizona Teacher of the Year, K‐5 Math Coach, Kyrene School District • Jere Confrey, Joseph D. Moore Distinguished University Professor, William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, College of Education, North Carolina State University • David T. Conley, Professor, College of Education, University of Oregon CEO, Educational Policy Improvement Center (Co‐Chair) • Linda Darling‐Hammond, Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education, Stanford University • Alfinio Flores, Hollowell Professor of Mathematics Education, University of Delaware • Brian Gong, Executive Director, Center for Assessment (Co‐Chair) • Kenji Hakuta, Lee L. Jacks Professor of Education, Stanford University • Kristin Buckstad Hamilton, Teacher, Battlefield Senior High School, NEA • Feng‐Jui Hsieh, Associate Professor of the Mathematics Department, National Taiwan Normal University • Mary Ann Jordan, Teacher, Dept of Education, AFT • Jeremy Kilpatrick, Regents Professor of Mathematics Education, University of Georgia • Dr. Jill Martin, Principal, Pine Creek High School • Barry McGaw, Professor and Director of Melbourne Education Research Institute, University of Melbourne; Director for Education, OECD • James Milgram, Professor Emeritus, Stanford University • David Pearson, Professor and Dean, Graduate School of Education, University of California, Berkeley • Steve Pophal, Principal, DC Everest Junior High • Stanley Rabinowitz, Senior Program Director, Assessment and Standards Development Services, WestEd • Lauren Resnick, Distinguished University Professor, Psychology and Cognitive Science, Learning Sciences and Education Policy, University of Pittsburgh • Andreas Schleicher, Head, Indicators and Analysis Division of the OECD Directorate for Education • William Schmidt, University Distinguished Professor, Michigan State University • Catherine Snow, Henry Lee Shattuck Professor of Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education • Christopher Steinhauser, Superintendent of Schools, Long Beach Unified School District • Sandra Stotsky, Professor of Education Reform, 21st Century Chair in Teacher Quality, University of Arkansas • Dorothy Strickland, Samuel DeWitt Proctor Professor of Ed., Emerita, Distinguished Research Fellow, National Institute for Early Education Research, Rutgers, The State University of NJ • Martha Thurlow, Director, National Center on Educational Outcomes, University of Minnesota • Norman Webb, Senior Research Scientist, Emeritus, Wisconsin Center for Education Research, University of Wisconsin • Dylan William, Deputy Director, Institute of Education, University of London http://www.nga.org/cms/home/news‐room/news‐releases/page_2009/col2‐content/main‐content‐list/title_common‐core‐state‐standards‐initiative‐validation‐committee‐announced.html http://www.corestandards.org/assets/CommonCoreReport_6.10.pdf 25 The written objections of the five members who opposed CC were never published

26 • Proponents will sometimes say, “we can ‘tweak’ the standards to make them meet our needs.”

• When states adopt the standards they MUST adopt them 100% verbatim

• 15% rule NV added nothing http://www.mcrel.org/~/media/Files/McREL/Homepage/Products/01_99/prod17_15PercentRule.ashx

• When something is added under the 15% rule it will not be on CC tests

27 Milgram – Indiana Testimony October 2013, Answering Question: Who rushed the CC Validation Committee? 4:35:00 to 4:37:00 http://www.in.gov/legislative/interim/committee/corevideo.html

28 Federal Government, “was involved in rushing Common Core” ONE reason this is a problem is because according to Two former counsels general to the U.S. Department of Education, Robert Eitel and Kent Talbert there are…

Article, The Road to a National Curriculum ‐ The Legal Aspects of the Common Core Standards, Race to the Top, and Conditional Waivers. They write: "Despite three federal laws that prohibit the federal government from directing, supervising or controlling elementary and secondary school curricula, programs of instruction and instructional materials, the U.S. department of Education (USDOE) has placed the nation on the road to a national curriculum." http://pioneerinstitute.org/download/summary‐the‐road‐to‐a‐national‐curriculum‐the‐legal‐aspects‐of‐the‐common‐core‐standards‐race‐to‐the‐top‐and‐conditional‐waivers/ 29 1/17/2014 Congressman Joe Heck (NV) requested, “…the House Committee on Education and the Workforce hold ‘a full committee hearing on the federal government’s involvement in the Common Core State Standards Initiative.’” https://www.dropbox.com/s/3qziwqffqdlvck9/Common%20Core%20Hearing%20Request%20Letter%20Heck.pdf