The Central Committee of the Washington State Democratic Party has passed a resolution that roundly condemns the Common Core standards. This is the first time a statewide Democratic Party committee has taken a public position against the Common Core, and it happened in the back yard of the Gates Foundation, which has provided the funding that made the national standards project possible. This could signal a sea-change for the beleaguered standards, because up until now, political opposition has been strongest in the Republican party.Please go read the whole thing.
And when you're done, take note of the author. Does that name ring a bell? It did to me! He was a speaker at this event, and commented on that post that I didn't quote anything he said.
It's not that I believe that "the enemy of my enemy is my friend", but I do believe in finding common ground with people. I support many of the objectives of Democrats for Education Reform, and I support Cody's dislike of the Common Core standards. His reasons are certainly different from mine, but perhaps there's more common ground to be had between us. Imagine, being against Common Core leads to common ground!
I'll refer you to my related comment on the topic just above … but yes, it's nice to see anyone standing up to it. And , I'll point out -- CC is also not a liberal issue. Jeb Bush loves him some Common Core, and appears to be the Republican candidate of the day …being against Common Core is a 'anyone who knows anything a bout teaching' position.
ReplyDeleteThat's not true; there are plenty of people who teach who have drunk the CC kool aid.
ReplyDeleteClearly, Darren, you did not allow for my givens… if they have drunk the Kool-Aid, they don't know anything about teaching. But, yeah … to not realize it is a widespread problem would be to make a huge mistake where we hope it goes away. I really don't want my son to not go to college because he only got up to math 3+, whatever the hell that is ...
ReplyDeleteI think there are many issues which are not Dem vs. Republican but rather statist vs. non-statist, and that's where the party lines blur.
ReplyDeleteExamples of such issues: freedom of the press, government transparency, balanced budget ... and the list goes on. I find sometimes that I have more in common with some Democrats than some Republicans (though not frequently). I also believe someone ought not to be judged by the conduct of his party but by the content of his personal character (to borrow a phrase).