National Governor’s Association (“NGA”), and the Council of Chief State School Officers (“CCSO”), No Child Left Behind Act, President George W. Bush, federal education funds, state Governors and state education Superintendents, Common Core, Inc., a non-profit, 501 (c) 3 organization based in Washington, D.C., American Federation of Teachers, the Fordham Institute, the Foundation for Excellence In Education, former Governor of Florida, Jeb Bush, Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter (R-Idaho), Governor Jerry Brown (D-California), and Governor Duval Patrick (D-Massachusetts), all support the Common Core effort.
When I read that list, I think, WOW! that's a ton of money chasing a problem that is fundamentally simple. Not only is it ton of money, it is a ton of wasted money, because as you have so many people and organizations "collaborating" on a simple problem you end up with a non solution.
The vast majority of politicians and educators are ignorant to the fact it takes very little knowledge to teach every single course taught in American schools, including all AP courses. The knowledge required is equivalent of what used to be taught to college freshmen.
It doesn't take advanced degrees. It doesn't take mega billion dollars of waste. It simple takes a person, not even a teacher, that can decompose a topic into small lessons that are easily consumed by children. Our language hasn't changed, our history hasn't changed, and math and science taught at this level hasn't changed. What changes are political agendas and current events. It isn't surprising that there is so much emphasis on political agendas in our schools and so little emphasis on the things that really matter because all of this is being driven by government and the quest for power and money.
Your final paragraph is both profound and succinct...bravo!!! I have no real problem with standards but everybody should first understand who is writing, promulgating, and funding the standards in order to get the true context and their ultimate goal. The article’s mention of the funding difference for MA on the Race to the Top competition was also telling. Your concern about agendas is well-justified, especially when these advocates wish to play Orwellian word games.