So what’s the problem with Common Core? Well, we don’t know. Don’t know how it will work, don’t know how well it will work and don’t know how much it will cost.
The State Board of Education adopted Common Core in conjunction with the state’s Race to the Top application. The prospect of “free” federal money? NC and nearly every other state were anxious to sign up, even though Common Core standards had never been field tested – not in a classroom, not by a teacher and not on students.
A number of curriculum experts have concluded that the standards, although better than what NC currently has, are not particularly rigorous. Other states have adopted standards that strive for higher goals. If we aim to improve standards in NC, shouldn’t we be looking to the best in the country to emulate?
Who buys something with no idea of what it will cost? Apparently state education officials. Costs associated with Common Core include teacher training, instructional materials and technology to administer the tests. Early estimates figure over the next seven years NC will need to spend about $525 million on Common Core, with $204 million needed right away to get this thing started. None of this is included in the state budget for 2013-15. Or county budgets. Or school board budgets.
If the indications were that adopting Common Core would revolutionize education in NC, catapulting our students to the highest level of learning and skills, putting them at the forefront of qualified workers for high-level employment, the cost might well be worth it. But so far, nothing and I mean nothing, indicates Common Core is the answer to improving education in North Carolina.
We’re better off to pursue the movement towards greater accountability and school choice.
