Common Core At Its Best

Common Core Standard at Its Best There are various opinions on whether to defend the Common Core Standards, or to oppose it. Is wanting to set the bar higher for our student's wrong, by using the Common Core Standards? The Common Core Standards are the ultimate benefit to student learning. Our student's should have the educational resources that will lead them towards becoming career-ready when it is time for graduation. The Common Core Standards was first brought into the spotlight in 2009 in a National Press Club speech by Secretary Duncan. Common Core Standards began to adopt new standards in the year of 2010 (Essex, 2015, 293). The Common Core Standards are fundamentally the framework that educators can use to lead their students to the road to success and become closer to becoming career-ready. Believe it or not, forty-two states, the District of Columbia, four territories, and the Department of Defense Education Activity have all moved forward and adopted the Common Core Standards voluntarily (corestandards.org, 2015). Common Core Standards are goals for each grade level to guide students to an overall prize, which consists of students gaining the necessary skills needed to succeed in entry-level careers. Common Core consists of the most effective standards from states all around the United States. These standards require students to think critically, which teach students how to be great problem solvers, and how to think through reasoning (Essex, 2015, 293). The Common Core Standards are the knowledge and skills that each student should gain throughout their K-12 education (corestandards.org, 2015). These standards are placed into effect to prepare students to be successful in entry-level careers, introductory academic college courses, and workforce training programs (corestandards.org, 2015). The Common Core Standards are the following: 1. Research and evidence-based 2. Clear, understandable, and consistent 3. Aligned with college and career expectations 4. Based on rigorous content and application of knowledge through higher-order thinking skills 5. Built upon the strengths and lessons of current state standards 6. Informed by other top performing countries in order to prepare all students for success in our global economy and society (corestandards.org, 2015). These standards are aligned with trying to give students a great start to their future, by providing curriculum that will provides sufficient benefits to their learning environment. Common Core Standards has an amazing effect on the classroom in general. Common Core puts creativity back into the classroom. It also gives students a deep dive in to education and learning, by providing a full understanding of material that students can use well beyond the testing season (neatoday.org, 2013). Common Core requires students to take part in their education, and to think more critically the text given to them and being able to use it in future endeavors (neatoday.org, 2013). Common Core provides teachers with collaboration. Meaning, "Common Core allows educators to take ownership of the curriculum- it puts it back into the hands of teachers, who know what information is best for students and how best to deliver than information," as stated by NEAToday (2013). Last but not least, Common Core gets students ready for college. Common Core helps all students get the knowledge and skills that they need to become successful in college or in an actual career. Students are taught how to be critical thinkers, how to analyze information, and how to explain answers through informational texts. All students under the Common Core Standards framework will be successful in every professional work thrown that them. Whereas some people would oppose Common Core Standards, many people take a stand and defend Common Core Standards for its structure and guidance for our college-ready students. Many states have adopted the national curriculum standard, better known as the Common Core Standards. To this day, forty-seven states are members of the Common Core Standards Initiative (Essex, 2015, 293). According to the National School Board Association, "The goal of the testing and assessment that will come with Common Core is to encourage a more thoughtful approach to teaching and learning (2013, 3). The goal for using Common Core and testing, is to devise a richer and more thoughtful approach to K-12 learning (asbj.com, 2013, 3). In the words of the Common Core developers, "The approach to the K-12 learning is to be fewer, clearer, and higher," (asbj.com, 2013, 3). Essentially, the overall approach to Common Core knowledge is to use the framework of standards, to create a pathway for excellence in the future. About the Common Core Standards Standards. (2015). Retrieved October 15, 2015, from http://www.corestandards.org/about-the-standards/ Essex, N. L. (2015). School Law and the Public School. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. Hardy, L. (2013). The Road to the Common Core. American School Board Journal. Key Shifts in Mathematics. (2015). Retrieved October 12, 2015, from http://www.corestandards.org/other-resources/key-shifts-in-mathematics/ Long, C. (2013, May 10). Six Ways the Common Core is Good For Students. National Education Association Today. Retrieved October 12, 2015, from http://neatoday.org/2013/05/10/six-ways-the-common-core-is-good-for-students-2/