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Common Core Standards

Blog No. 29. The Politics of K-12: Common Core, Charter Schools, Vouchers and Teachers’ Tenure.

BLOG 29 0e1841151_reinventing-americas-schools One of the earliest offerings of RINOcracy.com was “Blog No 3. Common Core State Standards: A New Cause for the Tea Party.” Since then, controversy over the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) has grown rather than diminished, and has become more complex. While the CCSS are the centerpiece of political debate, there are also disputes at federal, state and local levels over charter schools, vouchers and teacher tenure.

These are important issues that deserve the attention of RINOs and other Republicans. As we struggle with the challenges of income inequality and economic mobility, very few dispute that improving education is an essential ingredient of any successful approach to meeting those challenges. Moreover, it is increasingly apparent that first-rate education is vital to the ability of the United States to compete globally. But improvements are not easy to come-by. Different constituencies have differing perspectives, and attempts at reform that challenge the status quo inevitably generate resistance. Education reform is no exception.Read More »Blog No. 29. The Politics of K-12: Common Core, Charter Schools, Vouchers and Teachers’ Tenure.

Caught in the Net of a Triangular Prism (A Report From the Fourth Grade)

As regular followers of RINOcracy.com are aware, it is generally devoted to political commentary. But once in a while a change of pace may be in order, and this blog is one. As it happens, it is not entirely unrelated to previous concerns of RINOcracy.com, where we have already commented on issues involving K-12 education and plan to do so again soon. 

I recently began some tutoring at a nearby public school. Before embarking on this mission, I had warned the sponsoring organization that I would be of no use in attempting to help anyone with High School math homework. I have not solved an algebraic equation in well over half a century and the only thing I ever knew about calculus was that it gave frequent headaches to my freshman roommate at Cornell. “Not to worry,” they said, “we have a fourth grader for you.” “Sounds good,” I said. 

Read More »Caught in the Net of a Triangular Prism (A Report From the Fourth Grade)

Blog No. 3 Common Core State Standards: A New Cause for the Tea Party

Our friends in the Tea Party have a new cause. A May 30 article in The Washington Post expanded on earlier press reports that Tea Party groups have mounted a nationwide campaign against the Common Core Standards. Some readers of the blog will doubtless respond “Hunh?” But if you are aware of the Standards only vaguely, or not at all, and are not familiar with the growing controversy surrounding them, now’s the time to catch up.Read More »Blog No. 3 Common Core State Standards: A New Cause for the Tea Party