We, the undersigned, representing viewpoints from across the political and educational spectrum, oppose the call for a nationalized curriculum in the Albert Shanker Institute Manifesto “A Call for Common Content.”1 We also oppose the ongoing effort by the U.S. Department of Education to have two federally funded testing consortia develop national curriculum guidelines, national curriculum models, national instructional materials, and national assessments using Common Core's national standards as a basis for these efforts.
I'll take it.
You've got the left and right wing cavalry enveloping the Common Core phalanx on the wings, but ultimately, this is going to be won by weight in the center of the line. People will have to start noticing that these standards, and the tests and materials they spawn, just aren't very good (at least in ELA). Basically, a whole block of people have to stop discussing whether or not these standards are good in theory and look at how they'll impact practice. We'll see how hard the Gates-funded mercenaries fight against real resistance.