You do not understand the purpose of Common Core. It is to lower the difference between low and high achievers. It does this by lowering the high achievers, not by raising the low achievers.
Once this is understood, all will be clear.
And teaching backwards, stupid programming languages is indeed one way to achieve that.
Why is math being taught in ways that are torturous and counter-intuitive? Precisely to convince students with mathematical aptitude that they really don't understand what they're being taught.
It doesn't help that most grade school math teachers are completely innumerate and the only thing keeping them "ahead" of their students is the teacher's edition of the textbook.