Flabby to the ‘Core’
It’s hard to imagine that the substance of the “Common Core” multistate curriculum project could actually be harmful. But silly us, we were dead wrong. As it turns out a damaging, limited teaching philosophy rules the day.
Evidence of that was provided by The Washington Post “Answer Sheet” blog of Valerie Strauss, who printed a letter from Jeremiah Chaffee, a 13-year veteran English teacher in an unidentified high school in upstate New York.
Chaffee and his colleagues were given a sample lesson on the Gettysburg Address supposedly showing how the Common Core works.
Teachers were told to “avoid giving any background context” because the Common Core strategy of so-called close reading “forces students to rely exclusively on the text instead of privileging background knowledge and levels the playing field for all.”
more . . . http://www.bostonherald.com/news/opinion/editorials/view.bg?articleid=1061121119
Madeline Hunter is spinning in her grave. This is insane.
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