Parent education session:
Common core Q&A
Michael J. Maher, PhD
Assistant Dean, College of Education
NC State University
April 24, 2014
Introduction
• Michael Maher
• Current:
• Assistant Dean for Professional Education & Accreditation,
College of Education, NC State
• Oversight of teacher education and other school professionals
programs (counseling, social work, school administration,
psychology)
• K-12 & Teacher Education Policy
• Former:
• Assistant Professor, Teacher Education
• High School Science Teacher
• Family
• Two daughters enrolled in the Wake County Public Schools
Foundational
Concepts
• Perception is selective
• Perception filters through
our past experience
• Perception narrows when
we perceive a threat to our
sense of self, goals, or safety
• Problems arise when our
perception of a situation is
incomplete or distorted
Foundational
Concepts
• Perceptions and
interpretations occur almost
simultaneously
• Interpretations come from
our past relationships, it is
the “story” we tell ourselves
about what is happening
Foundational
Concepts
• Different people tell
themselves different stories
about the same perception
• Problems arise when:
•
we assume our story is the
only reality
Foundational
Concepts
• New goals for education require intellectually demanding
experiences that are developmental and continuous as
opposed to brief and episodic.
• What we do in school can essentially be divided into two
categories
• Algorithmic: follow a set of established instructions down a
singular path to one conclusion
• Heuristic: a problem in which one experiments with
possibilities to devise a novel solution
What?
• What is the Common Core?
• The Common Core is a set of College and Career-Ready
standards for grades k-12 in Mathematics &
English/Language Arts
• The standards represent goals for student learning
• They are NOT a curriculum
• They DO include both algorithmic and heuristic
standards.
When?
• When were the Common Core standards adopted by
NC?
• The Standards were adopted by NC in 2010
• Full implementation began in 2012-2013
When?
North Carolina first established a
Standard Course of Study
(SCOS) in 1898
• NC SCOS provides every
content area with a set of
competencies for each
grade and high school
course
• The NCSCOS includes the
Common Core Standards
(Math & ELA) and
Essential Standards (all
other subjects)
• Standards are regularly
reviewed and updated
(approximately every 5
years)
WHy?
• Why did NC adopt the Common Core Standards?
• In 2010, NC was one of 12 states to win a federal Race to
the Top grant totaling nearly $400 million.
• One requirement of the grant competition was that the
state utilize College & Career Ready standards.
Who?
• Who was involved in the development of the Common
Core Standards?
• The standards began with the work of the National
Governors Association (NGA) and the Council of Chief
State School Officers
• The standards themselves were developed by teachers,
content & pedagogy experts, administrators, parents, and
state leaders in work groups and feedback groups.
Where?
• Where else have these standards been implemented
• Forty-four states, the District of Columbia, four
territories, and the Department of Defense Education
Activity (DoDEA) have adopted the Common Core State
Standards.
How?
• How do these standards impact teachers?
•
•
•
•
Required professional development
Increased collaboration
Greater flexibility in developing curriculum
Easier transition between grades
How?
• How do these standards impact children?
• More rigorous
• Fundamentally shift how we ask them to solve problems
• Not only allows children (families) to move more easily
between districts, but between states
• Allows parents to make informed decisions about the
quality of education since states will use common
benchmarks & standards
• Allows for more accurate international comparisons
How?
• Should I support the Common Core?
• That’s entirely up to you.
Common beliefs
• The Common Core are Federal Standards
• The Common Core was paid for by large
corporations
• The Common Core will increase testing in
North Carolina
• The is no way to modify/update the
standards
Questions?
• Contact Information:
• Email
• mjmaher@ncsu.edu
• Twitter
• @mj_maher
• Facebook
• Professional Education @ NCSU
• Website
• http://mjmaher.weebly.com/
• Slides
• http://www.slideshare.net/mjmaher
Resources
• Common Core Website::
http://www.corestandards.or
g/
• NPR:http://www.npr.org/20
14/03/18/291166780/q-a-acrash-course-on-commoncore?ft=1&f=1013
•
Atlantic:http://www.theatlan
tic.com/education/archive/2
014/04/confusing-mathhomework-don-t-blame-thecommon-core/360064/
• Hechinger
Report:http://hechingerrepor
t.org/content/first-gradeteacher-dives-into-commoncore-with-cautiousoptimism_13033/
• http://hechingerreport.org/c
ontent/parents-return-toschool-to-help-children-withcommon-core-inspiredhomework_13873/
• http://hechingerreport.org/c
ontent/just-facts-pleasecommon-core-transformsschools-teach-writing_15452/
Resources
• WUNC:http://wunc.org/post/fa
ct-check-clearing-7-common-coreclaims
• Edutopia:http://www.edutopia.o
rg/blog/common-core-criticalthinking-aesop-vincent-mastro
• US News & World
Report:http://www.usnews.com/
news/special-reports/a-guide-tocommoncore/articles/2014/03/04/comm
on-core-myths-and-facts
•
Education
Week:http://www.edweek.org/e
w/collections/common-core-inaction-report-2014/index.html
•
Common Core
Hearing:http://youtu.be/CpBjio
T7Z1Y 10:33
• http://www.usnews.com/news/s
pecial-reports/a-guide-tocommoncore/articles/2014/04/17/comm
on-core-honoring-the-societalcontract-of-success-througheducation