The document discusses the benefits and criticisms of the Common Core State Standards initiative. It outlines how the standards are meant to create consistent, rigorous learning goals across states in order to better prepare students for college. However, some teachers and parents argue that the standards overly emphasize standardized testing and restrict curriculum flexibility. While problems still exist, the document supports the Common Core's overall goal of improving education quality through higher-order thinking skills and real-world applications in the classroom.

1. W H AT C A N C O M M O N C O R E D O
F O R E D U C AT I O N ?
B Y M I C H A E L G . S H E P PA R D

2. • The Common Core
standards are designed to
build upon the most
advance current thinking.
• Their models and lessons
transforms and reshapes
educator’s lesson plans
and teaching styles for
subjects such as English,
Language Arts, Writing,
Science, Mathematics, and
the like.

3. Their objective is to create forward
thinking and strategy in all students to
better prepare them for success in
college.

4. T H I S C O L L E G E - R E A D Y
P U S H H A S B E C O M E A N
AT T R A C T I V E P O I N T T H AT
H A S E V E N T U A L LY B E C O M E
T H E H A L L M A R K T H E M E
F O R S C H O O L S I N C L U D I N G
E L E M E N TA RY A S W E L L A S
S E C O N D A RY S C H O O L S .

5. To date, 45 states have already shifted
to the new Common Core State
Standards for English and mathematics.

6. As sensible as this new
educational initiative is, there
has also been various
backlashes from both
teachers and parents.

7. So what are the benefits for
the Common Core
Standards?

8. • First and foremost, the American
public needs to recognize the lack
of cohesiveness there was with
education from state-to-state.
• Standards that were acceptable in
one state could differ from those
of another.
• By implementing the nation under
one common standard, we will be
able to get accurate data that
reflects a holistic view of the
American education.
• In addition, for families and
students moving from one state to
the other, the transition within a
school's curriculum will be a lot
smoother since the standards are
the same.

9. • As for the curriculum itself, the standards
differentiate from subject-to-subject, but
highlight the concept of higher order thinking
and strategy for each and every class. Take for
example Language Arts
• Rather than testing remedial and antiquated
concepts that have been used for the past
twenty years, Common Core forces educators
to design appropriate lessons that test their
critical thinking and analytical writing skills in
their lessons.
• These particular concepts want to see how
the students arrive at their answers by noting
and citing textual evidence and outside
resources for their answers. In addition, the
standards ask for a stronger push for
informational text with the classic fiction
novels.
• This type of content converge can provide the
students with a wide variety of text exposure
and innovative analytical assignments. These
disciplines are further internalized in order to
enhance their reading, writing, speaking, and
listening skills for the child.

10. • For mathematics, the
standards lay a solid
foundation in whole numbers,
addition, subtraction,
multiplication, division,
fraction, and decimals.
• Taken together, these
elements support a student’s
ability to learn and apply
innovative techniques for the
more demanding conceptual
mathematical problems.
• In addition, students are
asked to holistically explain
how they arrive to each
answer through practical real-
world issue problems.

11. • As innovative and pioneering as these
standards are, they do have some
negatives that have pressed teachers,
parents, and professionals alike to
question the overall methods of the
initiative.
• Firstly, teachers and educational
administrators believe that the
curriculum inflexibility could jeopardize
their careers if the students perform low
on the national Common Core
assessment.
• Parents have also spoken out about
CCSS that the curriculum is too exam
heavy with phrases like “teaching for the
test.”
• In addition, parents have also questioned
the tactics their children are learning
when arriving at an answer. They ask, “is
it better to find the right answer in the
most effective way possible or explaining
an answer.”

12. W H I L E T H E P R O B L E M S A R E S T I L L
C U R R E N T LY B E I N G A D D R E S S E D , W E C A N
W H O L E H E A RT E D LY A G R E E T H AT C C S S I S N O
S U B S T I T U T E F O R E F F E C T I V E T E A C H I N G .
H O W E V E R , T H E Y H AV E P R O V I D E D A N E W
M O D E L I N T H E S T E P F O R F I N D I N G S T R O N G
E F F I C I E N T E D U C AT O R S I N T H E F I E L D .