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A Papa Bear Speaks Up: Engineer Dad Explains Concerns for 7th grade Common Core Math

2/15/2014

On Facebook these days, talking about our children’s homework has become sport. We wonder who is writing the common core curriculum and how they come up with some of the content? Everyone is comparing notes. Generally we see our teachers and school integrating common core with as much creativity as they can while still keeping some school academic traditions that the students look forward to each year that might not be on the “to-do” test list for common core. Seems more and more though, if it is not on the test, it gets dropped from the lessons. But, who can argue with higher standards? We are optimistic. But, up till now we have taken a wait and see position on whether common core is as good as they say.

We are not political. We are just reasonable. As a family we are probably a typical public school family with kids who excel in the system. Generally grades are good. Every now and then we see some 100% in TCAP categories. We diligently communicate with our teachers and we are very strict about completing homework and trying our best. Sounds like the model family any teacher would want? My wife and I are both public school graduates who are college educated. I have a chemical engineering degree. Math is my thing. And I enjoy helping my children with math homework. But, this week revealed to me a disturbing trend in math curriculum - vocabulary.

My son had been struggling. So we took on this week’s lesson with a little more hands-on approach and were puzzled with what we saw. On the math vocabulary list were “Constant of Variation” Defined as: a constant ratio in a direct variation AND “Direct Variation” Defined as: the relationship between two variable quantities that have a constant ratio.

"When two variable quantities have a constant ratio, their relationship is called a direct variation or a direct proportion. The constant ratio is called the constant of variation." (Page 405 Common Core math 7th grade textbook published by Pearson).

This is absolute mush. Made up for the sake of introducing words into math. I have had plenty of math in my time, and have never heard of a "constant of variation" or "direct variation" in either engineering school or in my work as an engineer.

The text's authors have attempted to string together some meaningful math words to try to define a simple concept of proportion. The concepts of proportions, and functions and relationships are very vital in understanding algebra, but I think if I was a student I would be lost in the mush. I thought maybe I'm out of touch, but you can't even find these phrases defined in Wolframalpha. Is this what is meant by “common core aligned”? To integrate made-up words so we believe them to be true? Guess Wolframalpha is not aligned?

A big part of the problem, if I understand the issue, is that this common core initiative is pushing all this standardized mush onto the teachers and taking away all autonomy and creative skills the teachers bring to the class with their diverse students. Somehow the belief is that if we integrate language arts into math, we will somehow strengthen our language skills? Nice idea. But, not with made-up words. I wonder if I would have become an engineer if language arts were a part of my K-12 math education?

So here is my attempt to verbalize and over-explain in the common core style of math written expression:

“If you were to graph the creative flexibility afforded our highly educated and maximally qualified teachers over time with common core, you would find that both the first derivative of the function and, most alarmingly, the second derivative of the function, are negative. There is no point of inflection as the function approaches infinity (i.e., increasingly decreasing teacher autonomy, with no turnaround in sight.)”

Look at the actual list of vocabulary (in picture above). Some words are viable. But, don’t make up stuff just to make us think we are going deeper or to give our kids an excuse to write in math class.

If this what we have signed on to with Common Core, I now understand why so many parents are asking for its repeal. Parents who are really paying attention lose trust in the idea common core is better. I understand this curriculum has not been field tested. So it makes perfect sense to let teachers field test by plucking out the good curriculum content from this mush we have been given in the Pearson textbook and leave the made-up definitions out of mathematics.

-submitted by a concerned Papa Bear in Tennessee

Some other articles about Common Core:

Why kids are struggling with Common Core Math:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/11/09/why-young-kids-are-struggling-with-common-core-math/
Sandra Stotsky: Common Core's math standards don't add up: http://www.patriotledger.com/article/20140118/Opinion/140129877
Journalist & Parent: Common Core Math Leaves Me Stumped: http://truthinamericaneducation.com/common-core-state-standards/journalist-parent-common-core-math-leaves-stumped/
Common Core: 3 * 4 = 11 is Okay (Youtube video):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DW0VxxoCrNo&feature=youtube

3/10/14 UPDATE: Momma Bears has received many comments on this blog since we posted it. Some are from teachers who say this IS Common Core and some comments are from teachers who say it is NOT Common Core. Some teachers say they've never heard of these terms, some say they have them printed in their textbooks but don't teach them, others say they use them all the time. One teacher claims that this topic does not appear in Common Core standards until high school, so being in a 7th grade textbook, it was probably published before Common Core and is, therefore, not aligned with Common Core. One thing is for certain: there is a lot of confusion regarding Common Core and confusing math terms.

Update: Inappropriate Climate Surveys in TN

2/7/2014

Our website has been on fire! With over 55,000 views in less than a week, parents are spitting mad about the inappropriate Climate Surveys we blogged about (Click HERE to read that blog). We've been swamped trying to respond to all the comments, media, and elected officials. Here's the update:

Here is what we found out about the Climate Surveys:

They have been given since 2010 in TN. Some schools gave them in the fall.
Some districts may have notified parents, but most did not (note: we haven't heard from any parents who were notified about these surveys, and we've heard from a lot of parents. We don't think they intended to notify parents until parents got wind of what was going on.)
Principals and school districts are being blamed for not notifying parents before the surveys were given, but that does not change the fact that it was still an inappropriate survey created by and given by the TNDOE.
"Active" consent is different than "passive" consent. "Active" consent means you have to opt-IN. "Passive" consent means you have to opt-OUT. Momma Bears has identified a new kind of consent: "Sneaky-passive consent" = parents aren't even told that these surveys are happening until our kids tell us they already took it. SCARY TRUTH: Parents don't know they can refuse these surveys because they aren't ever informed they are happening.
There are so many new mandates coming from the top (TN Department of Education and from local districts, too) that Principals and teachers are giving surveys & tests that they've never seen before. And with the volatile environment and job insecurity, they are afraid to speak up. It is all coming too fast and without parental input. That's a problem. A big problem. We are glad that some legislators agree with this. Momma Bears hopes that there are some swift changes with the TN Commissioner of Education and TN Board of Education (they are appointed by the Governor) because they are getting too big for their britches. There are way too many business and unqualified Teach For America people being paid huge salaries in the TNDOE, and not enough real teachers and educators in those roles.

Follow up to what happened when Mom met with the Principal:
I met with my child's Principal, whom I hold in high regard, and he told me his hands were tied on the Climate Survey. It was easy to see that he was upset about it. After a little prompting, he has decided to put upcoming tests and/or surveys in the weekly school memos. I am really excited about that. More opportunity to opt out if needed. He didn't bat an eye when I told him I didn't want my child to take the TRIPOD (another survey with demographic questions. Click HERE to read a previous Momma Bear blog on TRIPOD). He said he is tracking the number of hours spent on tests and prep for tests, because he wants to put the focus back on learning, not testing.

I mentioned there was a kid in my child's class who told the teacher he thought the questions were inappropriate and the teacher AGREED, but told him he needed to take it anyway. The principal looked disturbed by that. I think he is going to rattle a few cages and is thankfully one of the best middle schools in TN, so maybe he won't get axed.

Is this Common Core???
The TNDOE will, of course, say that the intrusive collection of student data is not common core. They will then try to hypnotize you with this chant until your eyes glaze over:
"Common core is just rigorous standards...
Common Core is just rigged (oops) standards...
Common Core is just rigorous standards..." Namaste.
Then, they will pass the blame on one of these scapegoats:

poor implementation of common core,
teachers who aren't yet trained in the common core voodoo magic,
dumb parents who are too stupid to understand the new mysterious math methods (because they prefer the simple old ways that worked)
the companies that make the new common core curriculum

Pinch yourselves, people, and wake up! Momma Bears has read the Race to the Top Application and Appendix C. You can't argue with the facts. Common Core is inseparable from the testing and data collecting. Don't believe us, read it for yourself. See how TN plans to create a "360 degree view of each child." Read how they plan to collect all sorts of information on every child (including information that spans other agencies like social services and welfare). Then read how the FERPA law was changed to allow 3rd parties to be able to access all this personal data without parental permission.

Still in the La-La-Land of Denial??? There's more:
Parents were surprised to learn that their children answered some personal questions on the TCAP Writing Assessment this past week (these questions were separate from the Climate Surveys. Students couldn't skip them and they were not anonymous). Parents had no clue. These questions were tied to our children's names and ID numbers so they weren't anonymous. The questions seem harmless enough (Do you have a computer at home? internet? How often do you write? etc.), but the fact that our children were asked questions without our knowledge makes the Momma Bear fur stand up on our necks yet again (especially after reading Appendix C of the RTTT Application). How far will they push with asking our kids personal questions without telling us??? They've lost our trust already with the Climate Surveys, Tripod Surveys, Gaggle, and PLAN assessments they didn't tell parents about. Plus, the fact that Momma Bears has contacted the TNDOE 3 times and still not heard any response makes us even more apprehensive and suspicious.

One Momma Bear asked her child's principal about these surveys and this was the conversation:

Mom: "My concern is about the survey that my son had to take this week, can I get a copy of that?"

Principal: "I don't think that will be a problem, the questions were just about writing."

Mom: "My concern is that you had my son take a survey without parental consent."

Principal: "I can tell you this is the same survey they have taken for years."

Mom: "So, you are telling me for years you have had children do a survey without parental consent?"

Principal: "Can I contact the district office about this?"

What can you do?

Check with your school district to see what surveys are being given.
Opt your children out of surveys.
Opt your children out of standardized tests, pretests, and assessments.
Ask your elected legislators to get rid of common core.
Ask your elected legislators to vote to support these bills
Sign this petition to get rid of common core in TN.
Sign this petition to get rid of the appointed TN Commissioner of Education

What's next?
Some parents have spoken with attorneys and are pursuing legal action. If you feel your rights have been violated, contact us and we'll put you in touch with that group.

Good news!
Representative Sheila Butts just introduced a bill in TN that would require that parents be informed of all tests (and she says the bill will be amended to include surveys) before they are given to their children. Contact your legislator and ask them to support it. HB2167/SB2404 is the Bill. Click HERE to find your legislators and their contact info. They need to hear from Momma Bears and Daddy Bears in TN.

Liar liar pants on fire: SCORE

12/30/2013

"SCORE reminds me of pushy car salesmen. They are in your face with their sales pitch and using buzz words to impress you. If you look under the hood, though, you'll see they are really selling you a lemon."
~ an anonymous parent

Unfortunately, Tenneessee is being sold a big fat lemon by SCORE. We are:
...bumping over potholes and realizing this machine has major problems,
...hearing the grinding of excessive testing wearing down children,
...screeching and groaning as we realize how developmentally inappropriate these standards are for young children and students with special needs,
...realizing crash-test-dummies never made sure common core was safe before children were put on board,
...shocked to see the lug-nuts pop off as excellent teachers leave the profession,
...scared that the driver doesn't have an honest-to-goodness teaching license and is bailing out in 2 years,
...choking on smoke billowing from the engine as our children are asked personally identifiable questions on surveys without parental consent,
...spending money we don't have to buy brand-name common core parts to make this vehicle get us to the next test,
...frantically searching in the glove box for the title, but come up empty-handed because it was given to a charter school company.

What is SCORE?
Tennessee State Collaborative on Reforming Education is the real name of SCORE. It was created in 2009 by US Senator Bill Frist. It is a 501(c)3 "nonprofit" organization (but some are profiting a whole lot from SCORE as you will see). SCORE is governed by a 14-member board of directors who are not educators or even leaders in the education field. Most are businessmen whose own children attend private schools. SCORE also has a 29-member steering committee of the state’s "top education stakeholders" which include some greedy business organizations (Stand For Children, Teach For America, TN Charter School Center, etc.) plus the token PTA leader who doesn't even have children in school any more. Oh, yes, the very controversial, Michelle Rhee, has her greedy paws in SCORE, too. Some of these organizations come to SCORE smelling the huge pot of money that TN won from Race to the Top ($500 million), and some are just token organizations included for their organization's names, but not really for their input (PTA & TEA).

SCORE seeks two outcomes:

Ultimately, every student in Tennessee graduates high school prepared for college and career
Tennessee is the fastest improving state in the country on the key student outcomes that will lead to college and career preparedness

Those goals certainly sound lofty and worthwhile... Who would argue with those, right? It is their methods to get there that are totally wrong. The things SCORE lobbies for isn't what the public really wants for our schools and our children like: smaller class sizes, rich music & art programs, funding for libraries, counselors, wrap-around services in schools for needy children, and less focus on testing and more on students.

HOW?
SCORE’s work is governed by a theory of change (reform) that includes embracing high academic standards (aka: Common Core, which we know have serious problems), cultivating great school and district leaders (that seek to privatize schools and benefit businesses), ensuring excellent teaching in every classroom (through unfair use of test results and over-testing students), and using data to enhance student learning (even though it violates student privacy to share student information with corporations, especially without parental consent).

Say what???
That's like saying we want to cure cancer (a lofty goal everyone agrees with), but we are giving everyone rigorous prune juice as medicine (common core), rating our doctors on our lab results (testing), and selling our hospitals to fast food chains (charter schools). We know it won't cure cancer, but it will make the prune juice people and lab testing company richer, it will run off the doctors who know this is a bad plan, and McBurger will be delighted to have all those tax dollars and customers stuck eating prunes at their restaurant.

Interesting tidbits we found on SCORE's tax returns:

CEO of SCORE

CEO/President's salary package in 2012 = $328,361 (including a bonus of $25,000)
Yes, that is much, much more than she ever made as a TN Senator.
Yes, more than TN Commissioner of Education's salary (highest in the state).
Yes, much more than the Governor of TN's salary.
Yes, that would pay the salaries of 6 teachers.
Okay, we'll stop now because all that money is giving us heartburn because we can't fathom someone profiting so richly off of our poor public schools.
Money given from SCORE to Stand For Children (another underhanded organization that claims to support children).
$75,000 in 2011
$75,000 in 2010
$50,000 in 2009
Not much detail is given why they gave that money, just that they are sub-grants. Stand For Children has hundreds of millions of dollars and doesn't need a penny from SCORE. Just another red flag to tuck away in the back of your minds when you're connecting the dots.

Where does SCORE get $$$ from?
Who knows? Their donors list is private. We do know that a big chunk comes from the Gates Foundation and some from the Hyde Foundation. There is speculation that some money comes from business interests who will profit from the things SCORE advocates for (like the Nashville-based Ingram Corporation will make a small fortune selling Common Core products). Some of those businesses are listed on the SCORE website as supporters.
***UPDATE on 8/27/14: the SCORE website removed the page of their supporters after they got a bunch of money from Bill Gates and got an expensive makeover to their old website. Lucky for you, Momma Bears happens to have a snapshot of their old website! Here ya go:

screenshot of old SCORE website from May 2012

Hmmmmm.....
SCORE awarded "SCORE Prizes" to 3 schools ($10,000 each) and 1 school district ($25,000) that had the most dramatically improved student achievement. Those schools were celebrated and used in SCORE video to convince people support their reform agenda. (((Did you catch that? Yes, the prizes to the schools were less than the CEO's big fat $25,000 bonus last year))).

And one of the schools, Rose Park Math & Science Magnet, was recently redistricted as a feeder school to one of the best academic magnets in their district, so the "dramatic student achievement" was really due to the swiftly changing demographics of students, not from any of the reforms that SCORE supports. (But those students sure look great in the SCORE video)

Take a breath and say Hmmmmmmmmmmm again...
SCORE created a coalition they claim over 300 organizations joined to support higher standards. (Who doesn't want higher standards, right?). They named the coalition a very noble-sounding name: "Expect more, Achieve more." At the TN Senate Common Core Hearings in September 2013, SCORE distributed impressively-thick packets about their coalition to the legislators and anyone who would take them. Momma Bears knows for a fact that at least 2 of the PTA organizations on that list never ever joined it. And putting all 138 school districts in TN on the list by default to pad the #'s is pretty underhanded. Some of the other organizations listed are pretty suspicious, too... Shoneys? home builders? Banks? Express Video & Tan of Ducktown? It looks like a list of Chamber of Commerce members to us. Of course businesses will join it (free advertising + it looks like you support worthy causes for children = #commoncorepaysbig!)

My lips are getting numb from saying Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
Among the education stakeholders on the SCORE steering committee are nonprofits, businesses, and public officials with strong connections and ties to the Chamber of Commerce. Many of these same people joined with SCORE to sign a letter to the Governor and Education Commissioner citing a misleading report paid for by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that awards a big, fat "F" to Tennessee for "Truth in Advertising" as a reason to adopt Common Core standards.
The F sounds really bad, doesn't it??? But check out the actual report and you'll see a few things that SCORE doesn't want you to know about...
1. This disclaimer regarding the Truth in Advertising category: "This category does not evaluate state tests nor does it grade states on the performance of their students. Instead, the evaluation looks at how truthfully a state reports student proficiency." Get it? This was a problem with the grownups in our STATE not reporting accurately, not with our students. Of course, SCORE doesn't publicize that Tennessee fared much better in other categories of this report, including academics, they only point out that big, fat F and use it to further their agenda.
2. This fine-print disclaimer buried in the report: "The authors acknowledge that this is an imperfect measure of state transparency because there is some debate about using NAEP alone to benchmark state tests. However, this method is currently the only one available when comparing the transparency of reporting from one state to the next."
3. Manipulated letter grades: The results were rated on a pre-determined, weighted curve, so the differences between state scores are not as major as one thinks... This method of grading means there would be a pre-determined # of grades. (Only 5 states "earned" A's, 5 got B's, 20 received D's or F's, and the rest got C's).
It is true what our high school statistics teachers taught us, you really CAN manipulate data to show whatever you want. Momma Bears gives that report a big fat F minus for Truth in Advertising!

Wait, did you say "Chamber of Cohmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmerce?"
The SCORE connections with the Chamber of Commerce are more twisted and tangled than a daytime soap opera. We're not kidding! Here are some of the juicy connections that the Chamber of Commerce directly has with SCORE, and we're probably missing a bunch, these are just the big guns:
The U.S. Chamber of a Commerce is self-described as the "world's largest business organization," a "voice in Washington" for three million businesses that is more concerned with NAFTA than educational issues. It spent $1 billion in lobbying this year. Sitting on SCORE's Steering Committee are the President of the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and the President & CEO for the Kingsport Chamber of Commerce.
But wait, that's not all. Several of the nonprofits on SCORE's steering committee are active in their area chambers of commerce. Scott Niswonger, the founder of Niswonger Foundation is a former chamber president. And Buzz Thomas with Great Schools Partnership was the longtime executive director for Niswonger Foundation. Hamilton County's Public Education Foundation regularly collaborates with their chamber of commerce. Businesses like Ingram Industries are also connected to the chamber of commerce. Mr. Ingram is a past director for the Nashville chamber. Pitt Hyde's Autozone is a major player in the Greater Memphis Area Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber and Mr. Hyde even paired up to finance a campaign supporting a sales tax increase to support Pre-K funding. Then, there is Tennessee Business Roundtable which is like an elite club for businesses operating as a PAC bridge between the chamber and politicians. The cat-daddy of the Chamber, Mike Edwards (yes, the same Mike Edwards that sits on the TN Board of Education), longtime President of Knoxville Chamber of Commerce, serves on their board of directors. He also serves on the Education Committee for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Interestingly, Edwards is highly involved in Knoxville's Public School Forum sitting on their board of directors. It is interesting because that token PTA Mom on SCORE's steering committee is the Executive Assistant for the Public School Forum.

Can't get enough of the SCORE deception???
Read more about SCORE's SHADY characters and the sneaky way SCORE created a highly-suspicious survey to show support their reforms. Click HERE to read our Momma Bears blog about all that mess.

The final SCORE:
Momma Bears aren't fooled by SCORE's professional website, fancy videos, slick brochures, or with the people they rub elbows with. They are a greedy organization who will do whatever it takes to keep their paychecks rolling in and their business donors happy.

This is a series of articles to educate people about non-profit organizations that disguise themselves as supporting children, but, in reality, do not. Click on the links below to read other posts in the "Liar liar pants on Fire" series:

StudentsFirst

Liar liar pants on fire: StudentsFirst

12/29/2013

This is a series of posts to educate people about non-profit organizations that disguise themselves as supporting children, but, in reality, do not.

FACTS about StudentsFirst:
Started in: 2010
Founder: Michelle Rhee
Michelle Rhee's salary: about $300,000 from StudentsFirst + profit from book sales + speaking fees of $50,000 per event
StudentsFirst budget: $??? (unknown because they funnel money through so many of their organizations)
Funding from: billionaire foundations, corporate investors, and hedge fund managers
Staff: 50+ people
Spent in TN to influence TN legislators: over $525,000
Headquarters: California (with offices in 16 states)

StudentsFirst does not put students, first.
They put PROFITS and POLITICIANS first.

Momma Bears aren't fooled. This is definitely NOT a grassroots organization. "Astroturf" is a better description. There are no healthy roots, only an expensive layer of fake green plastic that doesn't fool anyone. (Click HERE to read our Momma Bears blog about grassroots)

As StudentsFirst pretends to support children, StudentsFirst attacks the very teachers and school environments that nurture and educate children. Through millions of dollars from corporate interests, StudentsFirst influences campaigns and laws that benefit their wealthy supporters.

In Tennessee, StudentsFirst by far leads the pack of outside funding to influence elections and legislators. Why is an organization in California spending so much money in Tennessee? or any state? Because of the huuuuge profit to be reaped with public tax dollars by turning our public schools into profitable charter schools.

StudentsFirst has publicly celebrated budget cuts to school systems and announced its intent to do away with locally elected school boards, particularly those in urban areas. Why? School boards are the gatekeepers of taxpayer dollars, made up of locally elected individuals representing the people who pay those tax dollars. Without pesky school boards in place, StudentsFirst has far less accountability and can funnel all of its resources into the campaigns of just a few city and state leaders who agree with its agenda. That way, they can have more control no real checks in place. Why focus on urban school boards? Because urban school districts have more students (ie, more $), more per pupil spending (in general), and less-involved parents to protest (in general).

Here is what StudentsFirst supports with its money and paid lobbyists:

privatizing our public schools by turning them into profit-generating charter schools
getting rid of locally elected school boards
politicians
campaigns
decreasing teacher pay
testing kids with lots of expensive tests
common core standards
using test scores to fire teachers
using test scores to close neighborhood schools
hiring cheaper inexperienced teachers that don't have teaching licenses
eroding trust in teachers and public schools with manipulated test scores

Michelle Rhee is the founder of StudentsFirst. In Washington, DC, where she was appointed Chancellor of Education by the Mayor (who wasn't re-elected because of her), there still lingers a dark fog of suspicion over suspected wide-spread cheating in 103 schools during her time there. Though she denies knowing about the cheating, a memo has surfaced that proves otherwise. Liar liar pants on fire.

Here's what happened to schools who followed Rhee's advice:
(according to an article by John Merrow):
• "Six years after Michelle Rhee rode into town, the public schools seem to be worse off by almost every conceivable measure."
• With tight security after the cheating scandal, math and reading scores have plunged more than 40 percentile points.
• Half of all newly hired teachers leave within 2 years. "It has been a revolving door for principals as well."
• The per pupil expenditure has increased 27%, and the district has lost 13% of its students.
• "The most disturbing effect of Ms. Rhee’s reform effort is the widening gap in academic performance between low-income and upper-income students, a meaningful statistic in Washington, where race and income are highly correlated."

With all that money in their coffers, we can't help but wonder what would happen if StudentsFirst used the money on students, first? Use it for things that have been PROVEN to help students succeed, like:

smaller class sizes
teacher training
funding for art, music, PE, sports, enrichment, etc. (like private schools and nations with higher test scores have).
Heck, even basic supplies for our schools like copy paper, tissues, paper towels, and toilet paper would be better than what they're spending all that money on! (Yes, some schools in TN really have asked parents to send in toilet paper).

Momma Bears has dubbed the StudentsFirst motto to be:
"Students LAST, after we take care of our corporate investors."

Is this the best we can do?

12/23/2013

Momma Bears asked teachers:
What do you like and dislike about common core?
Their answers were surprising:

"I like that students must think critically, but I've been doing that all along as any good teacher does."
"I don't like the never-ending testing. It leaves less time to teach!"
"I like teaching math concepts in depth, but it frustrates and confuses some students and their parents."
"I was happy to hear that standards would be deeper and fewer, but that isn't really the truth. There are more standards and they're just all packaged together."
"The writing assessments are way over my students' heads. I've taught many grade levels and I know that these writing prompts would be appropriate for older students, but not the younger ones I'm teaching now."
"I'm having to ignore bad grammar, misspellings, and penmanship to prepare them for the common core writing assessments. That bothers me as an English teacher."
"I like the idea of every child being on the same level, but that's impossible in real life. Students are not all the same and they will never be."
"My students will be tested on the computer for writing assessments, but they don't know how to type. We don't have enough computers for students either."
"I am worried about my SPED students. I heard the new Common Core tests will be brutal for them, and they won't get any accommodations."
"I wish I could teach more literature instead of non-fiction. I've had to cut great literature that my students used to love and give them non-fiction text that they should be learning in Science or Social Studies classes."
"The common core training was confusing. The 2 Common Core leaders contradicted themselves and argued in front of us about what was correct under Common Core."
"I hate that my evaluation is tied to test scores. We haven't transitioned to the Common Core tests yet, so my students are still tested on the old standards. Which should I teach them: the standards they'll be tested on (and will make my evaluation score higher)? or the standards they will need for the future (but will net lower evaluation scores for me)?"
"I'm grateful that we are given freedom to develop our own lessons, but I've heard teachers in other districts are required to follow scripted lessons. They can't go back and review if students aren't solid because they have to move on to the next lesson on the schedule. I sure hope that doesn't happen in my district!"
"Every time I hear the word 'rigor' I feel sick. Rigor is just another word for test, test, test."

With these valid concerns that teachers raise, plus the issues that Momma Bears has already written about regarding the testing and violation of student privacy that are inseparable with common core, Momma Bears wants to know:

Are common core standards really the BEST standards we can give our children?

Sincere thanks to Paul Söderholm for granting us permission to use his artwork. (gnurf.net ~ paul@gnurf.net) Though he is from Finland, he perfectly captured the corporate influence on our American Education system.

Why are we required to keep these imperfect, unchangeable standards? Why are our children required to take expensive, time-consuming, confusing tests on them? Why aren't leaders listening to teachers???

How to get stinking rich in the education industry

12/3/2013

Times are tough, but that doesn't mean you can't make a buck in education right now. No qualifications or experience? No problem! In fact, it is actually works better if you have zero classroom experience (so you won't have any compassion for the hardworking teachers and innocent students you'll be profiting from).

You could pay $1,395 to attend a workshop (like this one) to learn how to get rich in the education industry, but Momma Bears already did the homework and figured it all out. And Momma Bears is all about sharing knowledge with other concerned folks. So, save your money and read about the easy 10-step program to getting rich with other people's money through America's public school system...

10 steps to hitting the jackpot in education:

Step #1: Start a consulting business or organization. It doesn't really matter if it is profit or non-profit. Non-profit organizations will seem more trustworthy and innocent to the public (but don't worry, that doesn't mean you won't get a nice paycheck.)

Step #2: Create a catchy name for your organization. Acronyms work especially well. Don't forget a logo. You cannot go wrong with an apple logo, they are very much in style right now.

Step #3: Make a website with pretty pie charts and lots of catchy buzz-words like these:

achievement gap
data driven benchmarks
human capital
Common Core aligned
education strategies
global citizen
rigorous, relevant, and robust

Step #4: Convince a school district that they are failing. You'll need to cherry-pick and manipulate test score data, make some glitzy charts, and use lots of buzz words. It helps if you can WOW the school board members and Superintendent with free trips or fancy meals, too.

Step #5: Find a Gullible Billionaire. (Bill Gates, Eli Broad, or any of the Walton family love education entrepreneurs, especially if you have a great logo.)

Step #6: Convince that failing school district to apply for a grant from the Gullible Billionaire. Note: the Gullible Billionaire may require a "matching grant" to get his money. Don't fret your pretty little entrepreneurial heart over that little detail! There's money to be squeezed from within that school district (those students don't need money for library, art, or music, do they?) Don't forget to tell the school district to ask for matching grants from that town's Chamber of Commerce and other gullible rich people. Businesses love to donate if you publicize their names; it is well-known that customers especially love businesses that help children. Be sure to check all those potential sources of grant money.

***Disclaimer: the Billionaire will require private student data in exchange for his grant. Don't worry, you won't go to jail. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) law was quietly changed to make it all legal. Parents would be upset if they knew, though, so don't let them find out.

Step #7: Name your price (which is conveniently the same amount as their grant funds plus the money they squeezed from their tight budget). Set a time limit to your involvement with the district, and include in the contract that you get paid no matter what.

Step #8: Pretend to study the data from the district. Visit some of their schools to seem legitimate. Then, convince the elected school board and superintendent to do any or all of the following (it really doesn't matter to you what they do, of course, because you still get paid regardless):

Fire teachers.
Hire unqualified temporary teachers that cost less and don't stay around long enough to get pricey retirement benefits.
Tell teachers they can earn bonuses and/or merit pay for reaching impossible goals.
Spend more money on testing students (but call them "benchmark assessments" to compile even more data, which Gullible Billionaires love).
Suggest they give biased surveys to teachers, parents, & students to convince them that you know what you are doing (these surveys are a great way to gather even more data. In fact, some Gullible Billionaires will often pay 100% for the surveys in addition to the grant!)
Squeeze even more students into classrooms to save their school district money (but don't ever mention how much they are wasting on outside consultants like yourself!)
Close neighborhood schools and give them to charter school investors.

Step #9: Now that you have stirred up a hornet's nest in that school district, it is time to get out of Dodge, cowboy! The citizens are starting to see they've been duped. It is time to go on a nice vacation or buy yourself a yacht with those millions of education dollars filling up your bank account.

Step #10: If you really want to rake in consistent long-term tax-payer money, consider starting charter schools. Charter operators set their own salaries and you don't have to deal with pesky financial audits and laws that apply to public schools. Charter investors get ridiculous tax breaks up to 38%, which will double your money in just 7 years! Yes, sir-ee, just sit back and let some commoners run your charter school empire while you watch your bank account grow.

So there you have it. Ten easy steps to hitting the jackpot in the education industry. What is your next goal in life? Perhaps children of your own? If you decide to brave the parenthood frontier, just make sure you put your own children in nice private schools with small class sizes, rich art programs, qualified teachers, huge endowments, and none of that common core stuff that some other education entrepreneurs came up with to sell textbooks & testing and gather data for Gullible Billionaires. Hey, maybe you'll see their yacht when you're on vacation so you can ask them for private school recommendations???

Don't believe Momma Bears? This kind of profiteering really has happened... maybe even in your school district!
Click these links to see for yourself:

Click HERE to read about grants & consultants in Knox County, TN
Click HERE to read about the enormous profit in Memphis, TN
Click HERE and HERE to see how TN's Governor profits
Click HERE to read how charters & testing companies make millions in TN
Click HERE to read about the scandals in FL, OK, ME, NJ, TN, NM, & LA
Click HERE to read the waste in Denver, CO
Click HERE and HERE to read how this firm profited from chaos in Colorado, New Orleans, New York, & St. Louis
Click HERE to read how a smart teacher does the math on Charter Schools
Click HERE and HERE to heed other's warnings about the Boston Consulting Group
Click HERE to see how Texas is being swindled big-time
Click HERE to see Louisana being taken advantage of
Click HERE for No Consultant Left Behind
Click HERE to see how a billionaire advertised for paid consultants in 15 states through Race to the Top
Click HERE to see how a consultant gets paid $625 an hour in Florida with public tax dollars (even though teachers haven't received raises in 7 years and the school board cut sports and student activities).

Pear$on in the U$A

11/21/2013

Parents, go check your child's textbooks. Do you see it there on the publisher's page? No? Well, don't just assume it isn't published by Pearson even if it says another publishing company's name because Pearson bought up lots & lots of publishing companies, but still retained the former names. (Click HERE to see all the companies Pearson now owns. We bet you'll recognize quite a few!). Pearson has a monopoly on common core. And testing. And pre-testing. And textbooks. And workbooks. And technology. And remedial help for students who fail the tests created by Pearson. And Pearson just recently acquired a major ADHD testing company (can you say, "conflict of interest"???) THEY are the ones publishing most of the common core hoops our children are forced to jump through. And they are making a boatload of our tax money off of it.

Pearson isn't even a U.S. company. Yes, you read that correctly. They have offices on U.S. soil for business purposes, but they an international corporation from the United Kingdom. Pearson spends millions on lobbyists and all-expenses-paid lavish trips for our elected and appointed officials in the USA to influence them. It is obviou$LY working for them.

This may seem far-fetched to think about, but we can't help but wonder: The British aren't still mad at the USA over that whole Boston Tea Party & Revolutionary War thing, are they? I mean, the U.S. hasn't paid taxes to them in centuries, but now our tax dollars are flowing into British pockets. Kinda weird to think about. Wouldn't making the other countries dumber make sense? Is THAT what is going on? It sounds crazy, but what other reason can explain: why is our children's curriculum is being dumbed down?

Even more suspicious, the second-largest stockholder in the Pearson corporation is "The Soverign Fund of Libya." Hmmm... That could explain why parents & teachers across the country are noticing a strange Islamic emphasis in their children's textbooks. Florida parents and leaders were outraged and required Pearson to re-print World History textbooks because of the obvious inaccuracies and bias toward Islam.

Tennessee parents, too, are upset about Pearson's latest textbooks. After dedicated parents read and researched new Pearson textbooks all summer, they attended the TN Textbook Commission meeting armed with proof. "On October 7, 2013 the state textbook commission came forward in a packed house to announce they agree, none of these textbooks should be accepted. This was unprecedented! The commission was praised by every activist, parent, community member and any one else that knew the courage and honor it took to stand up and make the right decision." Hooray! But HERE is where it mysteriously gets fi$hy: "On October 23, 2013 the commission met for an emergency session. What was about to happen was disappointing, but more than that it was shady and dishonorable. The decision was overturned. 3 of the members of the commission that had originally had the courage to do the right thing, by voting against these textbooks, suddenly decided to change their vote. What happened between Oct 7 and Oct 13 remains to be seen, but with the disgraceful decision made, disappointed parents and community members were told by state officials to go back to their local school boards to demand change there."

Really?!? Go to our local boards? It is not the responsibility of locally elected boards to review and approve every single textbook in their district. That would take them 4EVR (said like a teenager with much drama) to read and compare every textbook option for every grade. Most school board members have full-time jobs during the day. There is no way they could do that. No, the job of researching and approving textbooks is clearly the job entrusted to the State Textbook Commission, and they are obviously just passing the heat to the local boards. Even worse, the Textbook Commission canceled their November meeting and won't meet until January 2014. Cowards. Or maybe they will all be out of town on one of those luxurious "training" trips to Australia, Singapore, London, or Rio de Janeiro paid for by Pearson? Momma Bears aren't saying they are, of course, but Pearson has been under investigation in New York State for illegally influencing leaders with some sweeeeeeeeet trips around the globe.

It is not just Pearson's textbooks that are upsetting parents... Last year on the PARCC corporate core test in New York, Pearson Publishing included at least half-a-dozen test questions with NAME BRAND PRODUCTS embedded in the question. Yep, they plugged name-brand products to thousands and thousands of consumers, oops, I mean, "children," who were forced to quietly concentrate on the test question. Hmmm... we wonder how much the sale of Mug Root Beer increased after that day of testing? or if the stock in LEGO increased that month? Are the Pearson test-makers so dumb that they can't substitute a brand name beverage for "lemonade" or even something healthy like "water"? No, they are brilliant marketing geniuses! Imagine the profit possibilities! And because teachers and parents are not allowed to ever see the test, nobody will ever know... Tho$e $neaky, $ly devil$!

The USA needs to wake up! We're smart enough to educate our own children. We need to kick those with profit motives out of our public schools before it is too late.

This quote by Valerie Strass in her Washington Post column is terrifying, but says it best:

"Future historians (if there are any) are going to shake their heads in disbelief. They’ll wonder how, in a single generation, the world’s oldest democracy dismantled its engine — free, public, locally controlled, democratic education. If they dig into the secretive process that produced the Common Core State Standards, most of their questions will be answered."

It is just a shame that OUR kids are in the middle of this. Not Bill Gates' children. Not British children. Our brilliant, funny, loving American children. This is too close to home for Momma Bears to ignore. It is gonna take American Mommas & Daddies from all races, neighborhoods, and political parties working together to make things right.

Not the kind of Party you're thinking of

11/17/2013

We've heard it over and over... Any opposition to *common core gets blamed on The Tea Party. However, republican politicians blame cc opposition on "special interests" because they really need Tea Party support and don't want to burn any proverbial bridges with the party--those sly devils! The reality is that common core is a bipartisan issue. There are no sides of the fence to sling mud on because everyone is covered in it, courtesy of Bill Gates' money-pit.

We have news for you: The only Tea Party that we Momma Bears know of involves our daughters, some dolls, a few teddy bears, and a teapot. We're not radical. We're not political. We're Moms.

Now, to be honest, we've met some Tea Party people during this common core battle, and they're pretty nice people. It is obvious they love America and are passionate about American rights. Frankly, we wish more people were that way. The level of apathy in most citizens is just plain sad. It is much easier to just pretend it isn't happening, and let someone else deal with it. But we Momma Bears can't ignore what is happening because it IS affecting our children. We see it its negative effects right before our eyes. We hear about it daily from other parents across the country, so we know it isn't just our community that is affected.

Strange timing...
This blog has been in-the-works for the past few weeks, and, lo and behold, the U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, just happens to insult us moms as we were putting the finishing touches on this post. Oh. No. He. Didn't... Oh yes, he did! He said the pushback to his beloved Common Corporate federal standards is coming from:

“white suburban moms who — all of a sudden — their child isn’t as brilliant as they thought they were, and their school isn’t quite as good as they thought they were.”

Yes, he really said that. Aw, snap! That was the sound of intelligent, insulted parents across the country as their jaws hit the floor in disbelief that the U.S. Secretary of Education would throw our children (and us) under the bus like that.

We are opposed to common core, but not for the reason he claims. Our children are just fine, thankyouverymuch. Mommas know when fibbing is going on. We know that data has been manipulated to make it appear that American students are behind other countries academically. The truth is POVERTY in the USA is an undeniable factor on test scores. If the test scores of children in poverty weren't included, the USA leads the world in high test scores. And, unlike some countries, the USA tests every student in public school, rich or poor. Just look at this article posted last week about the 11 perfect scores on this AP Calculus test. All 11 students were from the USA. The test was given in 59 countries. BAM! We bet those Mommas and teachers are proud of those kids! And, to think, those students weren't raised with common core!

The nation who is "winning" the global education race is Finland - a country that does not have common core. In fact, Finland doesn't even have standardized tests. Finnish teachers are treated like rock stars and paid respectably. Class sizes are small in Finland. Oh, and Finland's poverty rate is less than 5%. The USA poverty rate is between 20-25%. Bingo.

The reality is that we Moms, Dads, teachers, principals, and even our elected officials are finding out that we've been duped. We've been sold a lemon with common core. The evidence is impossible to ignore. After our children are tucked in bed at night, we Momma Bears research common core and education reform until our eyes hurt. We email each other links and share them on facebook. We contact our school boards and legislators with proof that these reforms are hurting our children and schools.

The common denominator in all of this common core and reform-baloney is: MONEY. Our children are profiting corporations and investors. Momma Bears will tackle these greedy organizations in upcoming blogs. Stay tuned!

Next blog: Pear$on Publi$hing in the U$A

*Dear English teachers & Grammar Nazis:

Please note that "common core" is purposely not capitalized in our blog because we don't really think it is a Proper Noun. Everyone knows that common things do not get capitalized. It does not deserve the respect that capital letters imply. And if the real owners of common core (whoever they are) want to sue us, then bring it on. We just might sue them back, too, for taking spelling out of our children's education.
We may also affectionately refer to common core as: corporate core, common core Federal standards, common crap, etc. Of course, you are smart enough to know what we mean (and probably clever to come up with your own name for cc$$).

Forward>>

A Papa Bear Speaks Up: Engineer Dad Explains Concerns for 7th grade Common Core Math

Update: Inappropriate Climate Surveys in TN

Liar liar pants on fire: SCORE

Liar liar pants on fire: StudentsFirst

Is this the best we can do?

How to get stinking rich in the education industry

10 steps to hitting the jackpot in education:

Has your school district been duped, too???
Send the info to Momma Bears and we'll post it!

Pear$on in the U$A

Not the kind of Party you're thinking of

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10 steps to hitting the jackpot in education:

Has your school district been duped, too??? Send the info to Momma Bears and we'll post it!

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Momma Bears

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Has your school district been duped, too???
Send the info to Momma Bears and we'll post it!