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NewsSeptember 25, 2013

Critics of Common Core education standards told Missouri House Interim Education Committee members Tuesday the guidelines lack rigor, are one-size-fits-all and allow the government to collect too much individual student information. About 45 people attended the "listening meeting" at the Shuck Recital Hall at Southeast Missouri State University. About 18 committee members attended the hearing, led by Rep. Steve Cookson, R-Poplar Bluff...

Critics of Common Core education standards told Missouri House Interim Education Committee members Tuesday the guidelines lack rigor, are one-size-fits-all and allow the government to collect too much individual student information.

About 45 people attended the "listening meeting" at the Shuck Recital Hall at Southeast Missouri State University. About 18 committee members attended the hearing, led by Rep. Steve Cookson, R-Poplar Bluff. Among the topics discussed were teacher evaluations, early childhood education, school-board training and teacher tenure. But Common Core drew the most public comment.

Students who attended the Center for Self Governance, based in Tennessee, spoke at the meeting about their concerns about Common Core.

They argued Common Core is another federal government layer that steers students toward community colleges instead of four-year institutions. But local school officials said they already have started implementing the guidelines and that it's a positive initiative.

Another concern is data collected from tests will not stay in Missouri, but be sent to the federal government. "I've had enough of the government collecting information on me. I don't know about you all," said Esther Bohnert, of Jackson.

She said when states opted to compete in the Race for the Top, a contest created to spur innovation and education reforms in states and local school districts, states had to agree to implement Common Core whether they won the grant or not, Bohnert said.

Jan Farrar of Cape Girardeau County said Common Core is a "federal takeover of our children, and it's not right."

"The home-school movement is growing by leaps and bounds," Farrar said, adding she thinks Common Core dumbs down curriculum.

Mark Van Zandt, general counsel and governmental affairs with the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, said the agency's website has questions and answers on it about Common Core.

Rep. Bryan Spencer, R-Wentzville, said lawmakers have heard a lot of testimony in Jefferson City, Mo., from people against Common Core, and heard more at its hearing Monday in St. Louis. "When will DESE start answering some of the questions people ask, so it will take the heat off you and the people you represent?" Spencer said.

Van Zandt said Common Core began with governors and chief state school officers out of frustration with what was going on in Washington. He noted Congress has not reauthorized No Child Left Behind, which included accountability standards schools had to meet, layered on top of state standards.

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Van Zandt said Missouri already had high education standards, but the purpose of Common Core was to see whether states could work together to set benchmark assessments and standards to see how Missouri compares to other states and countries.

Testing under Common Core was to be developed by a national consortium, but he said some states have pulled out based on the pushback officials have received, because it will cost more and because of its changes.

Cape Girardeau superintendent James Welker, who attended the hearing, said the school district here began aligning curriculum to Common Core two years ago.

"We actually think it's a good thing," Welker said. "It's basically a guideline at each grade level of what each student should know."

Welker and assistant superintendent for academic services Sherry Copeland said the district still has control over its curriculum. If it wants to add something, such as the history of Cape Girardeau, that can be done, she said.

"By us aligning our curriculum to Common Core, we'll allow our students to compete nationally, as well as internationally. Common Core is stronger than the standards we were aligned to," Copeland said.

She said teachers feel confident what they're teaching will help students succeed. Full implementation of Common Core for all grade levels in English language arts and math began in August; at the beginning of 2013, the district transferred to Common Core for kindergarten and first grade, Copeland said.

Cookson said the committee is charged with submitting a report to the speaker of the Missouri House. The report will go into an archive that can be examined as legislators begin introducing legislation that will be important in future sessions.

rcampbell@semissourian.com

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