Common Core

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Community Forum on “Common Core”

Monday. June 10, 2013 – 6:00 pm
Thousand Oaks High School – Performing Arts Center
2323 Moorpark Road – Thousand Oaks, CA 91360

Panelists representing the official position of the Conejo Valley Unified School District
1.Dr. Jeff Baarstad, Superintendent, CVUSD
1.Mike Soules, President of Corwin Publishing and a parent of three CVUSD students
2.Dr. Jon Sands, Director of Curriculum and Assessment, CVUSD
3.Peggy Walker, Teacher, Newbury Park High School, and the 2011 CVUSD and Ventura 
Teacher of the Year

Panelists representing the views of the Concerned Parents of Conejo Valley
1.Tony Dolz, Founder, Concerned Parents of Conejo Valley and father of two CVUSD 
students
1.Dr. Bill Evers, Former U.S. Dept. of Education official and Fellow of the Hoover Institution at 
Stanford University
2.Dr. Sandra Stotsky, Professor Emeritus, Universitty of Arkansas; author and expert witness 
on Common Core before the U.S. Congress and numerous state legislatures

Kyle Jorrey, Editor of the Acorn, Moderator

Common Core State Standards are being implemented in California’s schools

What is Common Core?

A national education program, written by a national team imposing national, top-down standards and curriculum on all of the 45 States that have signed on to it.

With Common Core State Standards (CCSS)):

Dumbing down of American education
·Radically transforms education
·Math is 2 years behind other leading countries
·Calculator use minimizes arithmetic proficiency
·Manuals in place of English literature
·Cursive writing is dropped
·Critical thinking is not encouraged
·“College ready” means 2-year community college, not 4-year university
·Students could be required to select career path in elementary school
·Will result in lowering college entrance requirements
·All testing and much teaching will be on computers
·Easier to program them to “politically correct” viewpoint
·CCSS not tested, no proof they will improve achievement

Nationalized takeover of education
·Loss of local control
·Unconstitutional
·Implemented without Congressional or state legislature or local school board approval
·Parents were not consulted

Intrusive
·Personal data collected on students and parents
·Shared with other states, federal government and corporations

Exorbitant cost
·Extensive use of computers for teaching and testing
·Requires massive upgrade in computer equipment and broad bandwidth
·Extensive teacher training required to teach Common Core Standards
·New text books and e-books required
·A minimum of $1.6 BILLION required for California to implement

Corporations stand to make $ BILLIONS (Education By Corporations)
·CC standards developed/Copyrighted by 2 trade associations & special interest groups
·Much money to be made from text books, e-books, testing/grading, computers

Private and homeschoolers affected
·Aligning GED, SAT & APT with Common Core would affect charter/private schools & homeschoolers