More about the common core?

I'm concerned about the politically motivated protest that appears to be fomenting around November 18th.  I'm not sure that protesting these standards sends the right message.  There's nothing wrong with rigorous standards, and there are good and bad things about any set of standards.  What's being left out of these discussions are the more serious concerns with funding for the testing mandates that seem to come with the standards.  

Our district - District 21 - has already started working hard to implement the new standards.  As much as possible, teachers have been included in the process of refining the massive Common Core documents into workable "power standards."  We have already changed our teaching and assessing to fit these standards.  Our state-mandated test, the ISAT, has begun to change as well.  Cut scores recently jumped to better match national standards, after being reduced for years.  

For me, the real issue isn't deeply involved in that.  We are not taking dictation from Washington about what to teach.  However, we are being forced to comply with a new testing mandate.  Students will now be tested twice a year, starting as early as next year, and these tests must be conducted on a computer.  It's called PARCC, and it's much more serious than worrying about the standards.  

Think about it for a minute.  There are millions of kids in Illinois.  There are thousands of schools.  All of those schools - not just in Illinois, but in states around the country - are now being required to test kids more than before.  They are also being forced to purchase enough computers for their students to take these tests.  

Here are my concerns:

- We're spending WAY too much on testing.  Districts - and taxpayers - shouldn't be forced to pay for more testing.

- The beneficiaries of these mandates - testing companies like Pearson and computer hardware and software providers - are huge proponents of these multi-billion-dollar testing requirements.  They are getting rich from this, much of it from tax dollars.  

- There are good things coming out of this.  Computers, if teachers and students can use them for instruction, are GOOD.  Open, public conversations about standards are GOOD.  

- There are bad things coming out of this.  Too many of the voices involved in Common Core are in it for the money.  Public schools shouldn't be about profit.  National standards shouldn't be designed around profit motives - they should be designed around what's best for kids.  

- Many - even most - of our public schools are doing well.  Many of our schools are wonderful places to learn and to teach.  I love what I do, and I love that my school is a truly open, public institution built to serve its community.  Huge national mandates and onerous testing burdens make successful public schooling more difficult, not less.  

In short, there's a lot about the Common Core that works for us.  But make sure you check the price tag, and who's taking your money.