Common Core Curriculum

Ever since it was implemented, the Common Core curriculum has been a very controversial topic among students, teachers and parents nationwide. Opposers believe it is a method of government control over the nation's education system. Supporters think it will enhance education by giving everyone the same standards to meet or overcome. During my research I discovered what the government intended with Common Core and how it actually worked.
The purpose of the Common Core is to better develop a student's critical thinking skills, analytical skills and problem solving. They tried doing this by making a set of guidelines across the country so that teachers can compare and measure student’s progress. Even though it is a nationwide program, it is up
By handing teachers a step by step guide of what a student should know at exactly what time; teachers can now catch students that are struggling earlier and help them to stay with the whole. They state that Common Core does not tell the teacher what and how to teach as the teacher knows this better than anyone; it instead is a tool to establish what the student should be learning. The common core curriculum does not mandate the use of any particular curriculum and still grants teachers the ability to create their own lesson plans and teach their classes as they have in the past.
The opposition focuses on the loss of the arts. Many against the common core feel that the focus of the curriculum will be math and science, thus downplaying the need for creative writing and art programs such as music. They also stress the potential cost that will come with moving into a uniform school structure; many schools that had recently purchased textbooks will have to throw them out and acquire the new core curriculum books. Many of the opposition believe that teachers and parents were not properly consorted when common core was designed and therefore believe that is another method of government
Another concern is that in order to encourage the common core some schools have instituted certain measures when score goals are not met; this has led to teachers teaching the test. It has become a growing trend of classes become too focused on hitting each benchmark on time rather than nurturing and developing a student’s mind based upon their individual strengths. The concept of a uniform system is potentially one of the best decisions made in the education system; the down fall is the way this program has been implemented in rigorous form. There is no “cookie cutter” design when it comes to the development of our children. While uniformity leads to equality, foregoing creativity and individualism destroys not only the dreams of children but the foundation of our country as a