The Core

“It’s fascinating to me that some of the pushback is coming from, sort of, 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, and that’s pretty scary.” Thanks for that update, Arne. These were the words Secretary of Education Duncan had for a nation full of parents who are concerned about the new standards that will be applied to their children's education. It was in addition to comments he had made previously to debunk the "fringe elements" who suggest that the conspiracy theories about the claim that Common Core Standards are "a scheme for the federal government to usurp state and local control of what students learn." There are those on both the left and the right who fear the effects of these new guidelines. When does the fringe stop being fringe and start becoming the rug? I'm guessing that white suburban moms are rug and not fringe.
For that matter, so are the teachers and administrators who are implementing these standards. There are a great many of us who are still finding our way in the midst of this seemingly radical change. I have moms, dads, aunts and uncles of all circumstances coming to me with questions. Why shouldn't they?
It's the urban African-American fathers, Latino aunties and Tongan mothers who want to understand what their children will be experiencing in the classroom as we move forward into the twenty-first century. As an educator, I have learned that it's not a good thing when your class is sitting still, not asking questions. It would be bad if those students started a rumor suggesting that what I was teaching them was indoctrination for some secret society or clandestine organization. Or if they felt that my teaching was somehow undermining the principles of America.
We fear what we don't know. I've learned that over and over again as a student, teacher and parent. If you take the make expectations clear, there shouldn't be a problem. It's when we start to roll our eyes at the inquiring minds that want to know that we get ourselves into trouble, whether they live in the suburbs or the trailer parks, the barrio or the gated community. That's why it's called "public education," Arne.