This is part 22.
Here is a post from the anti-CBE group:
Red Alert-Del Bene (IoT leader) appointed to committee to “modernize” congress. I am thinking this is about FEPA and anything “evidence” based.
Thoughts?
And here are some replies to this post:
DAO and „smart contracts“
yes that’s what I’m thinking. Plus I get Microsoft will get the contract to do the “modernizing”.
Are you aware of this?
that seems like career connected learning.
I bet this is why our Governor just introduced a bill to bring broadband to all rural communities in WA.
I heard this from our Governor during his New Year’s speech. I don’t think he mentioned schools, just jobs it will bring. I’m sure they will get tax incentives like Amazon to come here. Alison Hawver McDowell any thoughts on this?
VA is big into cyber / IT skills https://virginiacyberrange.org/
we got the same rural broadband bill–passed last year
This Modernizing Congress fits in with Gardner’s AI in Gov Act and Hurd’s Open Gov Act. …and HART.
Here is a post from the Common Core Diva:
Warriors, HR 62, another push from the Feds for our babies. This bill allows Head Start and Early Head Start to shift from specific funding to block grants, embeds public money for private Pre K vouchers AND so much more.
Here is a post from the Texas anti-testing group:
I’m in Conroe ISD. My kids went to public school K-8, and K-7 never taking STAAR. My oldest is now a Senior and is going to college in the Fall and not a single college asked for STAAR scores. Not even Tx A&M.
I took it on the chin not allowing my kids to take STAAR. My admins were for the most part VERY supportive until Jr Hi. Some teachers were supportive, some actually rolled their eyes to my face, and others engaged in scare/persuasive tactics both to me and my kids.
Admins made announcements on the PA DAILY as STAAR approached “reminding 8th grade students you must pass STAAR to go to 9th grade.”
Admin told my child (I was standing right there) “I’m not sure how not taking STAAR will affect your ability to go to college.” (I was livid)
District admin told me EVERY YEAR “I’ve never heard of someone opting out, you’re the 1st..” (every year?!?)
My kids were pointed at and singled out “YOU missed STAAR! You can’t do that!” by other kids.
My kids are going to graduate HS without a single data point from their time in public school. Not one.
So why do I comment, give advice and call out the lies? Because if those of us who took it on the chin and stood up literally when no one else did when STAAR first came into being after TAKS, then it was all for nothing.
I’m just a taxpayer now, and have zero skin in the game as my kids are no longer in public school. But I’m here to help and will meet with anyone for coffee, help via phone call or text. I work, and have two kids just like alot of you, but this is important. I will help if I can..Don’t let the schools lie & bully you or your kids. Stand up to this. We did..& it works.
And another post from this group:
And so it begins… I typed up opt out letters for my 4th grade daughter in NISD San Antonio TX and gave them to her teachers for math writing and reading as well as copies to her principal. Today was the writing Mock staar. My phone was ringing bright and early from her principle this morning informing me my daughter refused to do it. I went over that she would be opting out (2nd year to opt out) and addressed our reasoning, thr principal tried convincing me just how “wonderful ” of a test and that its very beneficiary that they use these tests to figure out where our children are in their learning and they use them to figure out what needs a need for the next year as well both the staar mock in the staar testing, that I should reconsider.
I explained on testing days that my daughter has appts scheduled would I be able to bring my daughter in to write refuse… She said she would have to go to class and write refuse and could leave? Same for make up days she would be presented the test vpuld write refuse and could return to normal class…. Does this sound correct?
And some replies to this post:
These tests help teachers keep their jobs.
This is exactly why I Opt my kids Out of STAAR. Teachers should not have such a vested interest in how kids do on the test because kids aren’t teacher evaluators. My child is not a tool for the system to use to intimidate teachers and children and principals and neighborhood schools and communities.
I don’t mind my kids doing the Mock staar…. unfortunately alit of times I’m.finding that it’s tied to a benchmark grade . This is a double edge sword. However, it does work to my kids advantage with attendance and their good grades so I can/ have more to fight with.
But actual staar will not be happening.
I do know teachers that have moved to grades where they don’t do staar or other schools than
It teach and take staar
At my daughter’s school it isn’t tied to anything and angry that they have students test for 4 hours for a practice assessment ridiculous
wow. It’s so sad isnt it? The teachers and kids confirm that it’s tied to the grades. We need the public schools back to basics . These kids are not prepared .
Unfortunately there isn’t anywhere “normal” for her to go if “all classes are testing” I AM WITH U ON THIS- just saying as I am a teacher and I know both sides- when we have opt out kids we don’t have a place or a person available to watch them-
It’s a long long week for all of us-
It baffles me that a school would recommend a student come to school and write refuse on it instead of choosing to be absent. A blank test turned in is scored zero and affects the school’s pass rate. An absent student does not affect the rate so why would a school want their own passing rate to be compromised. It doesn’t make sense. ?????
One part of the rating is also attendance, so that could be part of it.
If they are at home, the school can’t pressure them to take the assessment. If they put a little kid in a “testing environment” teachers can start telling her how smart she is and doesn’t she want to “show how much she learned” and “show how she can use her strategies” (Barf) and eventually the kid caves to the adult pressue.
That is why my son does NOT go to school on testing days. Last year, he came home weeks before the test and began begging to take the test. He skipped a grade and is in the GT program and is highly competitive. The school knows all of this. They had begun telling him that he could be the “first kid in 3rd grade to get a 100” and that he “should change his mind” because “he’s so brilliant”. I shut that down immediately. Had I let him go to write “refused” on the test, then he would have 100% been pressured into taking the test.
And yet another post from this group:
And so it begins…..Mock STAAR in high school yesterday. 3 freakin’ hours of no class time. Do these have to be retaken if they fail them?
He was told he had to retake because he failed the Reading portion. Sadly, he had the onset of flu ??right before the test. He’s home today out sick.
And here are the replies to this post:
To give mock/practice STAAR (EOC in HS) are all local decisions. Each campus or District decides if they want to do them, not TEA. Ours were called “benchmarks” and were for actual grades. I let my kids take them since they were for grades and the teacher actually graded it. I picked my battles and didn’t sweat the practice ones. I would, however, bring it up whenever a “due to the lack of time” email was sent regarding a change in reading lists and remind them had they not spent so much time on STAAR they would have time to actually DO the lessons they had planned and not cut the kids’ actual classroom-level work, short.
Yes, I suppose they could called Benchmarks, but they never say. I’ll check with the English teacher since it was for reading. My concern is those STAAR questions are so badly worded, Year after year. I’ve heard from several kids that they hate that “what is the BEST answer?” They say it makes them second guess themselves. If it’s not for a grade, I’ll tell them I don’t want him to retake unless they’re willing to come in on their own time to test him but not during learning time.
If they aren’t for a grade, refuse to take them.
If they are for a grade, raise holy hell. They were NEVER designed to be given mid year (not all TEKS taught yet) and have a grade assigned (super low pass rate, no curve).
Or for giggles, print out the previous 2 years released EOCs and ‘study’?? them to get a perfect score ??
Here is a post from the Common Core Diva:
About the FL news with Gov. DeSantis ending CCSS, Thank you, but, it is a ruse. His Ex. Order won’t stop it til 2020, replaces it with fast track career paths, which is more CC.
Fox35 in Orlando (where the Gov was), also is wrong about how CC got started.
Don’t fall for the hype.
He has decried CC, but accepted ESSA. To accept ESSA is to have CC.
And a reply to this post:
That’s what I thought. What do you think they will do? I live in Tennessee, here is our problem, Chiefs for Change wrote TN ESSA plan. TN Republicans rebranded Common Core. We have awful TNREADY. the new governor and many State reps ran on getting rid of what was left of common core, they lied for votes. Then the new governor hired Penny Schwinn also from Chiefs for Change. I do not like when politicians lie and have no idea what they are talking about.
Here is a post from Shannon Joy:
REAL Reform? Or the Rename Game?
Cautiously optimistic about this turn of events … however a few things were conspicuously MISSING from Governor DeSantis’ executive order:
- Parental Control of the education & upbringing of
their children. - LOCAL Control of taxpayers over the curriculum
and standards in county public school districts. - Rejection of federal funding which is absolutely
necessary if a state seeks to emancipate
themselves from the federal standards. - Elimination of ESSA mandated federal testing
which will commence in April, 2019. - Elimination of ESSA mandated Longitudinal Data
Systems put in place as a requirement for Race
To The Top grant funding & ultimately codified as
a requirement for federal funding.
Just my 2 cents.
Here is a post from the Common Core Diva:
Warriors, an in-depth look at KS, GA, and CT. They are the latest in ‘grab for babies’ in your own home. These 3 join UT, OR, MN. The other States are in the works.
** Would you believe cortisol swabs, tracking into your teens, and personal ecosystems which leave parents?
You cannot say you haven’t been warned.
And another post from her:
Part 2 of my DeSantis statement:
I do not see how you can celebrate when the Gov clearly is going full on CCSS via “personalized learning” and College/Career Ready. Those ARE CCSS, just dressed with different names and tied to ESSA funds.
And some replies to this post:
Who from FL can give a precise pivot of what has been done, and what DeSantis plans?
For example- CT has been in Commons Core since 1998, when teachers were being trained in it – so it has been in CT earlier than most know. Common Core did not change- no modifications- just name change which everyone ignored. So we have full blown CC.
ESSA being the recent “improvement” – college and career ready- plus data collection– what is DeSantis action for developmentally appropriate academics ?
All DeSantis’ talk about “Workforce” training shows he is for the ESSA agenda. He must be called on this as well.
“Workforce training is NOT about vocational training. Rather it is a vehicle for a new governance structure that opposes free enterprise and representative government in favor of a centrally planned and managed economy. The government – in alliance with Big Business – herds unsuspecting parents and students into early workforce paths in order to crank out ready-made “widget-producers” or coders for Big Business. Rhetorical flourishes aside; this is a freedom-crushing individual liberty-stealing plan”.- JoAnn Fleming
OK, so for those of you that think he is a liar and this is false hope, what is your strategy get rid of CCS and ESSA?
Apparently the strategy for the last nine years hasn’t worked.
you know as well as I, we the people have tried with due diligence to end CCSS. You also know educrats and the CCSS Machine have ignored us. The plan is to send as much truth about CCSS to the leaders in FL. Will they see the light then? Who knows. As far as ‘negativity’ toward the news? No, it is brutal honesty. We are to call out the lies, are we not? Silence means compliance. Those of us speaking out are sick of these leaders assuming we will fall at their feet with adoration with a few words we long to hear. Talk is cheap and right now, the actions match the talk. I would much rather see real action. Only a repeal of ESSA will kill CCSS’s momentum. Even then, we have other tenacles to address.
btw Alabama had a plan under Michael Sentance and they did amend ESSA at state level per former State Board member Bettypeters but was thwarted by other State Board members
Here is a post from Shannon Joy:
CommonCore activists need to FLOOD DeSantis’ office with calls and messages explaining to him how to really get rid of Common Core. If a Red State is allowed to rebrand CC and call it repeal we will be set back another 2 years.
This should be top priority for the next 30 days.
And here are the replies to this post:
Red States have already rebranded Common Core and my State Kansas we had the strongest repeal bill in the country and our Red State Conservatives tried to gut it every single year and replace it with a bill that would allow CC supporters to just rebrand and keep it in place.
It will be interesting to see if this EO by DiSantis actually happens in the Land of Jeb Common Core Bush. If they don’t replace every book then it won’t happen and you can’t even get non-Common Core math books today. It’s not as easy as passing an executive order because it is so entrenched in public education today like Obamacare in our health systems, that it will take a lot of understanding and oversight to make sure it is actually removed from the State.
Like will all of the data mining and Common Core standardized testing be removed because many of those systems have been contracted with the Feds and their corporate friends?
We shall see…
Unfortunately most “Republicans” don’t understand the issue well enough to know what needs to be repealed or to get it out of the schools or they are too in the pocket of the establishment or the Chamber of Commerce to actually do it. Most just want to use it to get votes…
Yes, it’s been designed to be very complicated . . .hard to go back . . . like putting toothpaste back into the tube!
they have had this particular plan in motion since 1992. I said particular because this crap has been going on for decades but this particular plan was orchestrated by Hillary Clinton & Marc Tucker.
Arizona did the same garbage and people still think we got rid of it ??
people think we did in Ohio and all they literally did was change the name. People will believe anything.
That’s why we refused to support any changes to our strong bill in Kansas. Republicans tried to gut our strong bill in Kansas and replace it with language from the Indiana bill that did not repeal Common Core that was passed and signed by then Governor Pence.
The EO in Florida is worse if it does not have specifics on what must be done to actually get it out of the system. Because every Republican will say it’s already repealed and not lift a finger to do anything else to actually get rid of it.
They literally just changed the name here. That’s it…
When I ask about the standardized testing that CC aligned I get the zoned out zombie look because they don’t get it
I had to step back from being involved for my own sanity after awhile because these bureaucrats are 20 steps ahead of us. I still run a Facebook group just to share information but that’s it. I spent 4 years involved in grassroots efforts. My husband was starting to get upset with me because of it consuming me. A handful of people in each state is not enough to fight the machine behind this. They are organized educrats.
the words “Common Core” are being repealed, nothing else.
they just call it _ State Learning Standards.. aka: work force development.
I know I had to dial back my involvement as well because I was gettin threatening and harassing messages and whatnot from fellow republicans for calling out their mistakes
I’m a single mom and didn’t feel safe making my kids and myself a target
in Kansas the State School Board was on one hand fighting to keep Common Core in the legislature and on the other traveling around the State having meetings saying that we don’t have Common Core, but a different curriculum they are calling Kansas Kan. It’s hard to believe that they think we are that stupid.
I’m not a bit surprised. These people are ruthless. In fact, the Common Core fight has opened my eyes to more than just education.
We have a bipartisan crisis of a threat of globalism in this country. I was one of those republicans who had no idea just who was involved in this agenda. Common Core helped open my eyes.
Yep. It opened up a bunch of eyes here in Kansas too. A huge majority of the citizens of Kansas wanted CC Repealed. We went out the last year of our fight and got thousands of petition signatures from angry parents and Republican voters when each of the last primary candidates for president came to our State. Every Kansas Republican voter in those lines aggressively wanted CC Repealed.
Our Republican leadership in the State were refusing to let the bill on the floor for a vote because it would pass until after they got the petitions. Then they hatched a plan to gut our strong bill at the last minute and put in non-repeal language. We caught and exposed them and now they are sitting at home wondering why they lost their last elections. We lost a lot of Republicans since then.
déjà vu… We had ONE rep in Ohio dedicated in fighting this along with our mainstay mom, [name redacted[ leading the fight. We got absolutely no where except kicking Pearson out of Ohio but, as usual the bureaucrats were waiting to immediately replace PARCC with AIR which are the leaders in psychological/psychometric testing to begin with.
The one positive thing that I can say is.. Rob DeSantis is publicly acknowledging that CC has been rebranded in that state and saying that he is wanting people like Sandra Stotsky to help in this process.
This is a first coming from a governor. He may just shock everyone. What a blessing this would be for the rest of the country if he follows through on this.
And another post from Shannon Joy:
EducationSpeak:
‘Personalized Learning’ = MACHINE Learning.
?Your child, strapped to a computer, led through federally mandated curriculum as the system monitors their progress, sucks up personal data and builds an electronic dossier to be shared with educrats & corporatists. ?
No more teachers – only facilitators. And the goal is a human WORKFORCE to be built & controlled based on the labor projections of corporate statists. Not literacy, creativity, critical thinking or competency.
Just an FYI.
And some replies to this post:
This means that their version of homeschooling is government-issued computers and curriculum. Which is not actually homeschooling. It’s public school at home. But they make it sound so appealing when they give you a “choice” to homeschool.
you forget, there is an adult in the room…but we know nothing about content and are instructed to keep them quiet and not help or answer questions. we had 3 data collecting tests in 3 weeks..
A couple of a veteran teacher’s frustrations:
1) the groundwork that is the basis for individualized extension (read personalized) requires a personal touch
2) students crave relationships with their teachers; not with their Chromebooks
3) there is plenty of direct instruction required in how to work independently, and, in my opinion, is not occurring.
4) just as not all students are ready to read or do complex math problems at the same time, neither are all students ready to work from a computer at the same time or the same depth.
Here is a post from the anti-CBE group:
What a scam.
actually I really liked what Greta Thunberg had to say on the issue of hope. Hope is what you get when you come together to act. Not the other way around.
Yeah. I just feel like they are using her, too. The Green New Deal is all impact investing. It will be corporate led and advance IoT surveillance of everything. But I do feel better when I am with people. It’s just hard when so many don’t have all the pieces and are pursuing tactics that seem to advance the agenda of the people we are fighting. ??
Yea, I googled the CEO that came in to help Greta…voted the entrepreneur of the year by Ernst and Young. I mean, really? E and Y cannot be trusted for anything other then profit over people and planet; agree that they’ll try and use the NGD, (and homelessness etc.) directly or indirectly, in securitization schemes (just as you write about in impact investing) the way corporate used the need for helping low income folks get housing loans, -that then turned out to be a sub prime trading frenzy. They were fraudulent with helping Lehman Brothers that crashed the economy.
These guys never sleep. They take every good thing and ruin it for the rest of us, including kids like Greta, trying to secure a future 😦
Sigh.
And another post that was shared in this group:
It’s Tech Week for our office! Proud to Co-Chair Blockchain Caucus. We are also re-filing our bills to make America more economically competitive for artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency currency. We must be well-positioned for the 21st Century Economy!
And some replies to this post:
How does he tie to FEPA, WIOA, ESSA, Common Core, CTE, data mining, etc?
He has a history as a friend of public education, while serving at the state level. My first thought was, “how naive”. I don’t know the answer to your question. I have met him many times and his wife was a local teacher. I’m going to need to send him a few things.
I just tweeted him a bunch of stuff, but surely he must have ties to Orlando ADL don’t you think?
This group?
Yup
ADL developed xAPI that will track anywhere lifelong learning into the cloud.
Orlando is the military office. Much of the VR / Gamification / Simulation systems are developed with DoD to test military strategies and “cultural” training, etc.
I honestly did not know they were here but looking at it, I am pretty sure I know someone who is involved.
My god. It is a horror. Elaine Raybourn spends a lot of time in Orlando working on this stuff. She’s a loaner from Sandia National Labs.
Look out in New Jersey! The LGBT Agenda is at it again: https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/02/03/new-jersey-second-state-mandate-lgbt-disability-inclusive-school-curriculum/
Here is a post from a Utah anti-Common Core group:
ACTION ITEM
A bill that would allow RISE test scores to be used on student grades will be in committee MONDAY Feb 4th!
This will result in the coercion of parents to have their students take a test that has never been validated.
Link to the bill: https://le.utah.gov/~2019/bills/static/HB0118.html
Write committee members before the meeting or plan to attend to testify against the bill.
The meeting will be held at 2 PM in the House Building (northwest of the State Capitol building – 350 State St, Salt Lake City), Room 30, see map:
Committee member e-mails:
vlsnow@le.utah.gov; susanpulsipher@le.utah.gov; mballard@le.utah.gov; dnjohnson@le.utah.gov; blast@le.utah.gov; csmoss@le.utah.gov; jeffersonmoss@le.utah.gov; leeperry@le.utah.gov; vpeterson@le.utah.gov; mariepoulson@le.utah.gov; adamrobertson@le.utah.gov; swaldrip@le.utah.gov; christinewatkins@le.utah.gov
Here is a post from an Ohio anti-Common Core group:
From Karen Bracken
I told ya, I told ya, I told ya. The states are pushing vouchers because the federal government wants a federal program. They knew the best way to do it was through the states. WELL HERE YA HAVE IT. You can bank on the DC voucher legislation being spread across the country in the future. Vouchers will mean ALL schools including homeschool that take voucher money (and they all will) will have to follow the federal mandates. So much for choice. You will have choice of location but no choice in what your children are taught or not taught. THIS is NOT choice. This is federal overreach again. It is how they will get ALL children into the data pipeline. It is the privatization of public education. We have warned that DeVos was for privatization . CHOICE. WHAT IS CHOICE. What choice do parents not already have? You can send your kids to private school, religious school, homeschool, Charter schools, traditional public schools. So WHAT choice do you not have????? This is not about choice. This is all about who pays for your choice and when the government pays the government makes the rules. You darn fools. WAKE UP!!! REFUSE their schemes. And the FAKE Heritage Foundation applauds DeVos.
Here is a post from Alice Linahan:
Please read the message below I just received…
“Sources in DC tell me the Trump administration is preparing to release a major push in the next week (possibly as part of the SOTU) for a federal school choice program that would entail federal regulation of private schools. It may also affect homeschooling — that depends on how the bill is written.
The administration has put pressure on conservative organizations to support this under the banner of school choice. Some plan to openly support it because they do not fear federal regulators being able to decide under what conditions private schools can accept federal tax-credit scholarships.
Apparently nobody in the White House or Education Department has paid attention to the way the left has been treating Karen Pence’s Christian school even though it doesn’t receive any federal funds. We are in a culture where schools being Christian is enough grounds to threaten their accreditation and participation in extracurriculars such as sports.
The Obama administration blatantly rewrote Title IX to force every public school in the country to allow boys and girls into each other’s bathrooms and locker rooms. What do Trump officials think a President Kamala Harris or Elizabeth Warren’s education department would do with a federal school choice program? Or how many religious schools that had perhaps grown financially dependent on such a program would react to new bathroom rules or other bans on practicing their religion in their own schools?
This policy makes a freeway to speed Common Core 2.0. Republicans need to get this issue, and they simply don’t. With Democrats controlling the House, such a bill is thankfully not likely to pass. But responsive lawmakers need to be educated, especially since this push comes directly from DeVos’s office with, my source says, Sen. Ted Cruz running the bill.
All of you who have public platforms need to use them on this issue (I certainly will), be prepared to complain loud and clear on Twitter on SOTU night if this plan is released then, and all who have voices on Capitol Hill and in the White House need to complain about this to all related contacts as soon as it’s released. If you’re a Cruz constituent or know some, flood his office especially.
Here is a post from the Texas anti-testing group:
I am new to this page and I am sure these questions have already been answered on this page somewhere, so please forgive me…. My kids are in the 8th and 5th grades. The 5th grader is 504 dyslexic. I spoke with our testing director at our school district about opting out and I want to make sure the info I was given is correct. I was told that there is a lot of “wild info” on the web about how we have the option to opt out, but that is not true. That it is required by law that each student take the test. She did go on to say that my kids could just click “finished” and not answer any of the questions. If we went this route that they would have to be pulled to special classes to prepare for the next test because it would be considered a fail. They would have to go through this process all three times that the test is given and complete summer school to advance to the next grade due to it being SSI years. I am FIRMLY against summer school when my kids make great grades and their attendance is never a problem!! Any help is appreciated. I am gathering facts before I act due to me being a nurse in the district and feeling bullied already with just one request…🥺
And some replies to this post:
Start with fully reading txedrights.net Pay attention to the GPC and AI information. It will make sense once you read through the site.
I also highly recommend you read the most recent Dyslexia handbook published by the TEA. Someone published the link on this page about a week ago.
There’s no option to “opt out”, but you sure can REFUSE!
My daughter refused in 4th, 5th, 6th (and now 7th), and my son refused in 7th, 8th, Freshman, (and now Sophomore)
We did the GPC in 5th and 8th, and promoted based on core subjects.
We did not do remedial classes, accelerated instruction, any type of tutoring, or summer school.
And yes, you heard that right…. we are refusing eoc’s in high school. 🤗
Ha! She lied.
My 5th grader is not taking it and has never taken it. She will stay home and there will be a grade placement committee (if they even bother…my guess is they will just pass her on) that will move her on to 6th grade based on her grades.
It goes along with the same lies and scare tactics they tell 3rd graders…that they have to pass to go to 4th grade
Of course that’s what the school says..our school admins told me the same..they aren’t going to give permission, but it doesnt mean they are correct.
My Dyslexic with an EIP will take the test but she will only because I prefer her (or me) be hassled over it. I tell her EVERY SINGLE DAY that tests and grades do not matter to me. Our only reason to take is to gather information. It is in no way a reflection of her abilities. I may have to do a placement meeting but she will go to sixth grade and will NOT go to summer school. I think it is the parent’s responsibility to buffer their children and keep it all in perspective. But this is a life lesson that you don’t usually get to opt out or refuse just because you disagree. But you have to make decisions as to what is in your child’s best interest.
And another post from this group:
My 6th grader came home today saying that he is not allowed to take pre-algebra for 7th great if he doesn’t take the STAAR assessment. He takes all pre-AP classes right now and hasn’t taken the STAAR assessment the last two years. This doesn’t make sense 🥴. Any tips?
And the replies to this post:
As a middle school counselor, I always go with teacher recommendations first.
your school is simply trying to intimidate you into having your son take STAAR. Who does he claim told him that?
Absolutely [name redacted], I know they are. He said 7th grade counselor told him.
I hate this tactic. My 5th grader was not placed in advanced classes (not AP just regular advanced) b/c he didn’t take STAAR last year. After speaking with the counselor and looking at his straight A report card since kinder, she placed him in the advanced classes. She was very helpful and not discouraging either about the STAAR. I was surprised honestly. I hate the scare approach and that so much is based around STAAR.
Happen in my district my 6th grader is preap and her and her BFF was in gifted and talented together in elementary , the BFF didnt take staar and wasnt allowed take preap cause of no staar scores. Now my daughter is paranoid cause her math teacher just told them they had take 7th grade math staar or be in regular math
My daughter took pre-algebra 7th and now algebra 8th, so it clearly can be done. They are just being difficult.
Grand Canyon University has caved to political correctness and canceled Ben Shapiro’s speech:
I found this post from someone in Washington:
The Welcome to Washington Baby Act of 2019 is going to have a hearing in Olympia soon.
The House and Senate bills will give the state the right to send home-visiting nurses to your home to assess your newborn, your parenting skills, and observe how you care for your child/ren. Families will be required to follow or comply with the standards already in place under this Act.
This is NOT the same or comparable to having that first check up with your Dr after your child is born. This is not what that is.
The same agency that removes children from homes and places them in foster care is within the same agency that will oversee this home-visiting program.
If you’d like to attend these hearings or testify please let me know via DM.
Remember, these bills are in place at the request of the Governors Office. These were not proposed by a lawmaker, nor did a citizen request these on behalf of their lawmaker.
Governor Jay Inslee wants this legislation to pass here in WA.
***Please click on the links below and comment on the bills to let these sponsors know how you feel about this intrusion into your home and family.
***Please also call the hotline in Olympia to leave a message for your 3 legislators that you want them to VOTE NO on HB 1771 and SB 5683.
1-800-562-6000
Your legislators are given these messages directly! They are given a tally of how many of their constituents support or oppose a certain bill.
Our elected officials need to hear from parents, grandparents and anyone who cares about parental rights in general. The state should not dictate how families raise and care for their children.
SB 5683
HB 1771
Here is a post from the anti-CBE group:
I have become such a cynic. I have volunteered with Straight Streets and the first thing I thought of was what data is being collected on our homeless folks here in Orlando.
I looked at the Chapman Foundation and didn’t see any red flags but UCF may have their own agenda.
And here is a reply to this post:
Philadelphia is being set up for the first safe injection site in the US based on a Vancouver model that is a social impact enterprise. It will be paid for with private funds and my understanding is that people at UPenn are developing biometric wearables that will likely be rolled out as part of this. I know that there are very intense projects underway to count unhoused people for the census, and while I would like to believe it is for the right reasons, my hunch that it is to develop baseline data for impact investing.
Here is a post from an Ohio anti-Common Core group:
More on Sex Ed in schools
I found It’s Perfectly Normal available thru the Marion Public Library….Reducing the Risk is taught thru a PERP program to state agencies aimed at teens……PP is associated with this program
Here is a post that was shared in a Minnesota anti-Common Core group:
Minnesota Pushes Baby-Readiness for the Workforce as Means for Infant Education by Linda Bell
From MN House testimony: “James Heckman, Nobel Laureate at the University of Chicago estimated an 8% return on early childhood programs. The rate of return to private capital in the stock market is doubled rate of return. If you invest $1 for 20 years @ 8%, you make $50.00.”[per child] Really!!!
“Essentially, Sojourner feels strongly that prenatal home visits and school by year 1 for all children is optimal for their “brain growth” and good for our state’s “economic development.”
Watch out in Idaho: https://www.thenewamerican.com/culture/education/item/31403-idaho-bureaucrats-caught-sexualizing-children-with-obama-grants
Here is another post from the Minnesota anti-Common Core group:
BOTTOM LINE: TN Legislators sold our children’s future for money. They signed on and agreed to national standards they hadn’t even seen. They were not allowed to see the application for RTTT money so there was no way for them to know the promises that were made. Would you buy a house without seeing the house, knowing how much it would cost, would the house truly meet the needs of your family? No you wouldn’t but our TN legislators signed on to something without knowing anything about it. Again, bottom line the driver here was MONEY not education. Our House and Senate Education committees should be ashamed for what they have done and many of them are still holding elected office. They lied to us, they deceived us and they are still lying and deceiving to this very day. The new TN standards were rebranded Common Core standards and where we did make changes according to the 2 top rated standard experts in the country the changes were worse than the original Common Core standard if that is possible. This evaluation of our new standards was sent to every TN legislature and it was totally ignored. It is time to drain the swamp right here in Tennessee. This board member is also right about Charters. Another lying, deceptive scheme. From 2010: Only 3 Senators voted against this scheme. Sen. Mae Beavers (she said it was a violation of the 10th Amendment) Sen. Thelma Harper (she said it would destroy public education) Sen. Morano (sp?..said it was an assault on teachers and teachers stood by her and she will stand by them). H/T Tennessean, Karen Bracken
And yet another post from this group:
I am VERY CONCERNED about these bills for Birth to 3 years old popping up in the House and now in the Senate! New ones today authored by Carla Nelson (R-Rochester). All weekend, I’ve been reading not just the bills but those who are invited to testify before committee. Unlike the bills, which will give expansive funding to accomplish this task, the intent from invited testifiers is to place ALL infants in schools for “child development purposes” and “the benefit of the workforce.” We are well within a time frame where these kinds of bills will definitely damage various kinds of school options. Privitization and government are working hand-in-hand. The cookie-cutter system continues to taking shape! Keep your eyes open. Action coming soon!
Here is a post that was shared in a Colorado anti-Common Core group:
Join the Rally tonight —
DougCo Residents, Elected Leaders to Protest School Board for Silencing Community Reaction to Controversial Teacher
WHEN: Tonight at 5:30 pm
WHERE: DougCo Schools administration building
620 Wilcox St, Castle Rock
Residents are furious after Mountain Ridge Middle School teacher and union leader, Michelle Grissom, publicly tweeted about a student from Covington Catholic a rally in Washington, DC being a member of the “Hitler Youth” and attempting to instigate an online mob against a child.
Several DougCo residents signed up for public comment during the Jan. 22nd Board of Education meeting to complain about Ms. Grissom’s behavior, but school board prohibited them from speaking. Board President David Ray cut the mic of a parent and Castle Rock resident for speaking the teacher’s name while addressing the district’s social media policies. Ray then had him escorted out by law enforcement.
Residents are protesting the strident behavior of Ms. Grissom and the condensing reaction of the school board. Community members are demanding an apology from the board, action taken against Ms. Grissom and clarity around DCSD’s social media policy.
And another post from this group:
Gov Polis has a grand plan for free kindergarten…. however it will cost our tax $$ to pay for it. 🤦♀️🤦♀️ Let’s call it for what it is 💰💰
Here is a post from the Utah anti-Common Core group:
Not related, but I’m not sure who else to ask. [Name redacted] was helping the school library today. She was asked to check copyright dates and if the book was older than 2000 and is not checked out regularly, they get destroyed. She is in Davis County. Has anyone heard of this? I don’t understand why they would destroy a book instead of just giving them away if they are not used.
And some replies to this post:
Yes it happens and it is sad
This happens in other places, too. They want space for more current books. I think sometimes they get sold for super cheap, rather than destroyed. The classics get replaced by popular, but not worthwhile books.
When you have government controlled libraries, they do whatever they want. Citizens should really try to read books before 1920 because you have a lot of REVISIONIST history going on.
The government controlled libraries pick and choose those books which will help push their agenda. They purchase books that you would NEVER ever checkout, I am referring to immoral books, but yet, they are using your tax dollars to BUY THEM!
These are some reasons why the government should NOT be involved in education or libraries!
That is so sad! I think my local library tries to sell them cheap to raise money.
this is at her elementary school library. I can’t see why they wouldn’t give them to the students to take home or donate them in some way. Such a waste.
Ohh, ok. That is sad. I know our schools threw away a lot of older textbooks this last summer. Someone actually found them and were giving them away to homeschoolers.
They should give them away to the title 1 schools to giveaway to their students. You hear of so many that don’t own their own books. Having them on hand can only help. Community centers with a large refugee population would be another good place.
They want to change social culture, history and behavior.
Yes, you are correct!
Gotta make room for more minecraft books………..
There are so many classics that are older I have tried to check out at the library and they don’t have them. When I ask for them, they look up the publication date and tell me, “oh that’s old! We don’t usually carry books that old (except for a few of the well known ones they use in school regularly). We try to stick more recently published books.” I was APPALLED. Is this not what a library is for? To preserve and stock all kinds of books and information from all eras?
yep i am hoarding good vintage books and curriculum once i purchase them
same here!
I think they may be reasoning that older books could be obtained for free or cheap online so having newer more popular literature would better increase literacy access. I disagree of course but can see how cheap and convei $4 books off of amazon and books before 1920 made free through kindle would make it harder for libraries to comptete.
I understand trying to change them out for newer stuff – especially if it’s popular series that help get kids to read. My issue is that they destroy them. They could easily donate them to any number of charitable causes or students. I’m hoping to hear back from the district on this issue.
That is so Farnheit 451. Creepy!
A school teacher told me I should not be teaching my kids to read with old books, “because they are just OLD!” In my opinion, the older, the better!
Scary. The scriptures are pretty old – but I account my oldest’s reading ability in part due to us reading them together. Now my 1st grader gets mad if I don’t wake her for scripture reading because she wants to be part of it and read too.
Love our old books and what they teach.
If interested, librariesofhope.com contain older brooks you can purchase or some of them have been put online for free. Marlene Peterson of “Well Educated Heart” has spent numerous hours collecting stories. This is a homeschooling group and it is awesome!
And another post from this group:
ATTENTION: Please contact your state legislators, esp House members to begin with, and ask them to VOTE NO on HB118, Incentives for Statewide Assessments (aka we’re going to make it really, really hard for parents to tell their kids they don’t want them to take the new RISE or ASPIRE tests–formerly SAGE). So much for inalienable, parental rights. Should this bill pass, RISE/ASPIRE scores CAN be used for grades or advancement. Students who TAKE these tests CAN be rewarded which means that a student who doesn’t take the test is at a disadvantage. So much for caring about kids with learning disabilities or special needs or anxiety. AND this means we are willing to submit to all things which the state assessment system deems necessary for our kids—parents’ rights are only allowed as long as the state thinks they are important. If you disagree with the educational plan the state of Utah has determined for your kid, well too bad! High anxiety? Stress? Well, make sure you get an IEP or a 504. You, as a parent, know NOTHING about what your child needs. And teachers? Support for this bill just means everything is dependent on the testing. Tying teacher pay to these evaluations will come back when it’s tied to federal dollars.
Here is a post from Alice Linahan:
Texans Beware: The Full Texas Senate is on board with the “Medicalization of Education” All have signed onto SB 63 and now SB10.
Please take the time to read Anita Hoge’s article linked below:
Excerpt:
“We are witnessing today what could be described as the grandest expansion of the Nanny State in the history of America. We believe this expansion to be one of the most diabolical, intricate, and subversive schemes to plague the landscape of American public policy toward Socialism.
This atrocity is “The Medicalization of Our Schools.”
A view from the classroom of today would astound onlookers that mental health and social, emotional, and behavioral interventions have replaced academics. With these wrap-around mental health services and interventions into personalities, values, beliefs, and dispositions at school, teachers are expected and forced to monitor and collect personal behavioral data on our children that has nothing to do with education. Data is collected, logged into state longitudinal data systems, shared, and ultimately, exposes our children to ‘surveillance capitalism.’ This personal data is freely given and used by outside contractors, foundations, and businesses to create software, curricula, activities, and programs that delve into changing the personal qualities of children and their families according to a government set of objectives. Schools represent a “captive audience” and as such, prime targets for social policy change.”
Here is a post from an Ohio anti-Common Core group:
From Rosemary Stein MD
Parents: Teach your children to follow the money. In North Carolina, the Superintendent of Public Instruction took the maximum donation from pro Common Core Democrat Michael Bloomberg and his Teach fro America daughter. It should be of no surprise that Common Core is still destroying the lives of North Carolina children. It would be interesting to follow the money when the North Carolina Board of Education, under the leadership of Bill Cobey, refused to vote out Common Core. You will remember that the republicans ran on defunding Planned Parenthood. However, when it came time to vote, they refused to do so. Follow the money. Our country deserves better leadership. You are going to have to take your duty to vote seriously. To save America, we must save one child at a time. Join the cause. Invite a friend.
Here is a post from the Texas anti-testing group:
Question: my 7th grader (With no accommodations) has been told there will be no paper test for Math STAAR this year (and I believe Reading STAAR as well). I am wondering if this is a change across all of 7th grade in TX or just a change at my child’s school. Also, are parents able to request paper administration? My daughter has a hard time taking online math assessments and is very anxious about this change. Thank you.
And some replies to this post:
I just said this! Like how do you know all kids can use computers well? ??.
Like you are used to testing on paper and how do they know their isn’t glitches?
This will be a VERY common thing with most schools. Computer-based assessments are cheaper, and pretty much everything about STAAR revolves around money in some way or another. Also, computer-based assessments encourage the sort of posh, over-paid administrative positions that are all the rage these days within large districts–who needs to deal with kids when you could pull down six figures while setting up old laptops and sending out mass emails telling classroom teachers about some Google Classroom feature they’ve already been using for the past three months?
Most of your kids’ teachers will be on your side. I’ve been a part of two different teams now that have repeatedly pushed for paper tests, as our kiddos invariably perform much better in that format (it’s not just your kid), only to be shot down for vague lip-service reasons.
Go to the admins and insist on a paper test option. Rock the boat. Make waves. Go to your school board. Annoy them. Parents are the only thing admins and board members are actually afraid of.
Computerized testing is being pushed more and more. The accomodations on the computer are different than paper tests and one could argue that they are better. As a teacher, I do not recommend computer testing for math assessments. Students generally do poorer. Computers can and have led to problems on testing days. Even if everything gets sorted out, it doesn’t mean that students are not stressed and frustrated. These can lead to poorer performance. If your student does not have the option to take the test in any other format, I would insist that they get proper training and practice on several occassions to feel comfortable with the technology including how to use the online tools like monitor adjustments, highlighters, and reading assistance tools if available.
I’ve done both math and ELA, and it’s the same for both. Something about computer-based testing leads to poorer performance regardless of the subject matter. When I taught high school ELA, I’d see students leave the entire essay section blank, despite months of preparation. Now that I’m teaching math, it’s the same sort of thing–computer-based assessments feel irrelevant to students for some reason (probably because they’re a lot smarter than any of these test-loving buffoons think) and lead to poorer scores.
One could argue the accommodations are better, but the TEA would actually have the research, just like when they tested their ELL accomodations and found they made no difference to the ELL student performance. Gee thanks. And who does the use of computer impact most? Lower income families with less everyday access to computer technology. Typical STAAR thinking. Let’s find more way to label lower income schools and students.
yes! She almost always gets A’s in math and they did their last test on the computer and she got a 75. She was devastated.
I was hearing about this, too! Usually A’s for mine but she made an 80 on that test they took online. She was so upset and said doing it on the computer was so much harder than with pencil and paper. It doesn’t seem to bother her much for ReLa but she hated it for math and said she knew she would have done better if it had been a traditional test. She and I both are so upset they have chosen to do the STAAR this way this year. ??
I should have stated that my daughter has no accommodations. Maybe this it’s just a district decision to have all the seventh graders take it on the computer…they did a math test last week on the computer. She usually gets high grades in Math and she got a 75. She had been getting great scores on the preceding homework. She was devastated.
Here is a post from the Common Core Diva:
years ago I was at a HS conference and HSLDA had a booth directly across from where the booth I was helping with was. This was maybe 2013? Anyway, o heard one of their well known folks misleading several families who stopped by about how safe they were from CCSS. The lady’s booth I was helping with had made me promise not to bring up CCSS. So there I am, listening to all the lies, and not able to speak. When the HSLDA folks left for lunch, they left out free resources. So I wandered over and looked at the publications. The CCSS one was awful. In it was CTE, Career paths, dual enrollment, early college..and more. I knew then every stinking bit was CCSS.
And here are some replies to this post:
Interesting! I also was manning a booth for MACC in 2014 at our MACHE conference in MN. I went to visit the HSLDA booth and talk a bit of course bringing up CCSS. I had spoken 1 hour earlier to a packed room of 350 people and they had had to turn away another 200 I was told. So there was great interest and HSLDA lead did talk with me but seemed not to know very much. Later, the two younger men (teens/early 20) assistants for HSLDA who were helping came over to my booth and stated, “You know, HSLDA isn’t really working against Common Core.” And so, that’s why I’ve never trusted their AP program online, etc.
AP is a sell out, too. Look at the Leadership of said group, then know an agenda all their own links to DC. As proved by the appearance during School Choice Week.
Well, now we have Trump speaking about choice in his speech last night. Don’t we have enough problems without getting into another??? Is Charlotte Iserbyt writing anymore??
not sure if she is. Yes, Trump has always had a skewed Ed agenda. His pick of Pence proved that.
https://scontent-ort2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/51563419_2285931358124857_7711930731374575616_n.jpg?_nc_cat=107&_nc_ht=scontent-ort2-1.xx&oh=dbfcca4c75cd9f6704ef3335d8a9f9e4&oe=5CE211AC
Here is a post from a Utah anti-Common Core group:
If policy makers in Utah pass HB118 they will have to admit one of two things, that they favor a national curriculum or that they are unqualified to set education policy because the have no understanding of how it will affect the system.
The claim is that Utah “writes” its own standards (despite the observable fact that they are identical in many respects to national standards) and that even where they are aligned, they are “just” standards, but…
If tests based on nationally-aligned standards can be used for valid course credit, we already have a national curriculum.
If they are not an assessment of course curriculum then giving academic credit for them is not a valid educational practice but an unethical political nudge to ensure we do adopt a uniform national curriculum.
The saddest part is there are way too many who couldn’t explain in the first place why in the history of America the idea of a national curriculum was antithetical to the rights of conscience, academic freedom, and pluralism that was at the heart of everything this country stood for regardless of political party.
And here are the replies to this post:
I listen to the proposal. When it was stated (not verbatim)“teachers may choose not use the test scores because it’s not relevant to what they are learning…” wow! Since when do teacher not teach what is relevant to year end tests?
Side note but still an honest question because I’m not understanding: how are there national standards without a national curriculum?
there isn’t really. But it’s what they claim. I’ve compared it to a prison. “You’re not chained! You can go anywhere you want… as long as it’s within the four walls of this cell.” This latest policy just exposes the charade for what it really is.
In other words, when our state is required to use a a nationally-aligned test that determines our funding, it puts a couple prison walls around us.
Our state education plan, according to ESSA, must be personally approved by the federal department of education– or we lose our funding. There’s another wall. It turns out they do have an agenda with this — one of those federal state plan requirements is for 95% of students to take the nationally -aligned test –which was un-piloted, not age-appropriate, is unavailable for either parents or teachers to review, and was not tested to see if it’s a valid test of what it hopes to test.
Utah parents have been objecting to this test, and last year a little more than 5% of students were opted out. So our state superintendent wrote a letter asking for a waiver to the 95% participation requirement. It was denied.
Who has the power to control Utah education?
If our legislators cave and write law incentivizing participation in this test, it shows they prioritize federal control of education, rather than parental say.
Prioritizing federally-aligned tests means school time is used to teach to it. That makes it a defacto educational standard.
This appears to be a way to force K-12 Schools to use Federal Standards regardless if the State accepts federal funding. All the Federal Department of Education has to do in the future, is tell Colleges if want to continue getting federal assistance, research grants, or get Title IV status/funding, or government-backed student loans, or anything really, they can only accept k-12 transcripts that contain those classes the Federal DOE has pre-approved.
In other words, you can graduate from High School, but not all of your classes will be accepted by your College unless your classes were already pre-approved by the Federal DOE. By forcing Colleges into only accepting K-12 classes the Federal Government has preapproved, the Federal DOE controls everything being taught. This would allow the FED to control the classroom content without having to use money going forward.
I believe this is the Federal Governments ultimate goal. They eventually see States being pressured by the residence to stop taking Federal funding. This would allow the Federal DOE to continue to control content by taking those State k-12 funds and put them into Higher Education, which in turn forces the Colleges to comply with whatever the Federal DOE requires, including telling local K-12 school boards, if you are not following Federal Guidelines we will not accept your graduating students.
Where in the Constitution does it give the federal government authority to be involved in Education? It doesn’t, so the Governor and State legislature need to declare NULLIFICATION, we will not obey this USURPATION of power that was NEVER granted!
You’re right, and they’ve never forced it. It’s all been done by grants/bribes. Utah could, today, refuse to go along with this and the consequence would be that we wouldn’t get a small percentage of “our” federal funds for which the testing is a condition. This current bill is Utah VOLUNTARILY giving up parental rights currently protected in state law to get the money. It’s selling our birthright for a mess of pottage. Two other states got their funds with much higher opt outs than Utah – 19% in New York compared to Utah’s 6% – because they said they’d send one set of numbers to the feds but for the purposes of accountability at the state level they won’t factor in the opt outs. This is better for schools and teachers and makes it so they don’t feel pressure to bully kids into the tests for school grades. Utah could have done this too, but those pushing this bill caved before even trying despite the valiant efforts of a few good board members.
Here is another post from the Common Core Diva:
For anyone wanting the 5 page document exposing the shifty rebrand game currently making headlines.
This document of mine has been requested all over the nation. It is being shared with elected officials, school boards, and concerned citizens.
As I pointed out yesterday on Shannon Joy’s radio show, no State can wait a year.
*** Sen. Alexander (TN) lacks only ONE piece of legislation to complete the cradle to grave career tracking, HEA (Higher Ed Act).
**Every bit of the CCSS is in the plan FL has laid out. A federal end CCSS bill is also a shell game for Fed vouchers. CT’s proposal to end CCSS is only in the early stages, but is backed by Workforce Ed sellouts.
**Every bit of THAT is in the HEA, WIOA, and, ESSA.
We cannot simply trust these leaders have our students as a priority.
Watch out in South Carolina! Your legislature appears ready to sell you out to be data-mined: https://scpolicycouncil.org/featured/lawmakers-reintroduce-data-warehouse
Here is a post that was shared in an Ohio anti-Common Core group:
This was reported from a parent in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Ypsilanti Middle Academy and High school is near Ann Arbor.
The narrative below was posted in the Choose to Refuse Common Core Facebook group.
The link provided is the district’s Facebook page.
The school’s vision is to be “the first choice for an exceptional cradle-to-career education.” This is the mantra of the CCS agenda. ??
****EDITED to add: I looked back on the parent’s other posts and realized that she is a member of the school board. I think the school administrators are not being honest in their response to concerns parents and citizens. They most likely were scared from the complaint from a member on the school board and changed the itinerary when she called to complain. I wonder if she has a copy of the original itinerary for the event.
Here is a post from the Utah anti-Common Core group:
ACTION ALERT
The bills that will remove our ELECTED State School Board & replace it with a 9 member board APPOINTED by the governor is on the agenda for MONDAY Feb 11th at 3:40 PM.
There are two parts to this which requires both a bill & a resolution to pass. The bill provides the details, the resolution sends it to the voters because it will require a Utah Constitution Amendment in order to pass the bill into law. We need to stop it in the legislature.
If this is allowed to pass we will lose our voice as parents in education. When a State Board is no longer accountable to their constituents, they will simply rubber stamp anything the governor or the federal government tell them to.
Please come to the committee meeting! It will be held in the House Building at the State Capitol Room 30.
Map to the building (Rm 30 is downstairs): https://le.utah.gov/maps/map.asp?room=W030&frame=true
Parking map: https://utahstatecapitol.utah.gov/…/capitolhillcomplex2014.…
Write the committee members & urge them to vote NO on HB242 & HJR13!
Committee info: https://le.utah.gov/asp/interim/Commit.asp…
Committee e-mails: vlsnow@le.utah.gov; susanpulsipher@le.utah.gov; dnjohnson@le.utah.gov; blast@le.utah.gov; csmoss@le.utah.gov; jeffersonmoss@le.utah.gov; leeperry@le.utah.gov; vpeterson@le.utah.gov; mariepoulson@le.utah.gov; adamrobertson@le.utah.gov; swaldrip@le.utah.gov; christinewatkins@le.utah.gov;
Links to the bills: https://le.utah.gov/~2019/agenda/hedu0211.ag.pdf
Language from HB242 describing the appointment process:
Current members would serve out their term and once membership drops below 9 members, the governor will begin to appoint, with the consent of the Senate.
And here are some replies to this post:
What is maddening about this is that because of the political leanings of the majority of the elected board, they basically rubber stamp what comes from the feds anyway. They have lost the notion that their role is to DIRECT the State Office of Education and do the bidding of parents
If they do this, what is the point of HAVING the board?!
Who is Ballard? Seems this Representative is voting all the wrong ways? I thought this original idea was from Dan McCay? Do you think Ballard got it from him? Whoever it is, needs to be schooled quickly on how Governor- appointed school boards is how Utah got entrenched in Common Core and all the ESSA mandates in the first place, and we only recently were able to change it! We also need to put a moritorium on any Legislation being brought up about this in the future as this is getting hard to fight every year!
When you have voting by mail, the government is choosing the representatives, that is why they are pushing citizens into this type of voting system by eliminating or drastically reducing the polling locations.
No one is addressing VBM issue, why? Our Utah Constitutional right to a “secret ballot” in Article 4, Section 8 is being destroyed. The “secret ballot” is a pillar of a Republic form of government.
See left column of the below picture on the very bottom.
Also, if we were a LIBERTY minded people and representatives, there would be NO government controlled education!
Here is a post from an Ohio anti-Common Core group:
I wrote this 4 years ago. The book referred to is The Cult of Common core by Brad Mcqueen.
Our Children
I was told by a teacher if I couldn’t afford to put my kids in private school. …to just accept it because it is the law.
A lot of teachers do not like it, but are forced to teach it or risk losing their job.
Teachers knew nothing about it and were told to just accept it and teach it.
A teacher in Arizona went to the conference in Chicago in 2 0 1 0 to get some knowledge about it and develop the standards. He was told to stop asking questions.
This same teacher had a question about a student writing sample. He was told, “We don’t ever care what the kids opinions are. If they write what they think or put forth their opinion they will fail the test. “
This teacher states: ” I have always taught my students to think for themselves. They are to study multiple views on a given topic, then take their own position and support it with evidence. He was told, “That is the old way of writing. We want students to repeat the opinions of the experts that we expose them to on the test. This is the new way of writing. “
It is bank rolled by Bill Gates.
It is….Common Core.
If any of you really know me, you know when I feel something is wrong, I will speak out for the truth. This is how I was raised both at school and at home. I was taught that one didn’t just do what one was told if it was wrong. Those who fought in war fought for our right to oppose….not appease the wrong.
Common core testing begins this year. I would encourage parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends to learn about Common core for themselves. Don’t take the media opinion or even mine. Research and be open minded about it.
We owe it to our children, our country, and our future.
The teacher I mentioned wrote a book about his experiences. Books are a good place to start.
Thank you for reading this.
Here is another post that was shared in this group:
Yesterday one of my daughters was doing some online homework for Lone Peak Highschool and told me she was uncomfortable with the questions. I helped her through the questions which unfortunately were very inappropriate for public schools to be asking children in high school in my opinion. There were a lot of questions regarding whether these students like people who are gay more or less than those that are straight. Very inappropriate in my mind. I helped her through the survey and for nearly every question I had to tell her to choose not to answer the inappropriate questions. I took a couple of screen shots (I should have taken more of them).
Tell me if you think it is appropriate for schools to ask kids these types of questions.
And here are some replies to this post:
What class was this for?
I believe it is for Sociology
I’d find out the purpose and who has access to this info. before I got too upset. A single teacher should not be asking these questions. What is the data used for and by whom?
they also asked questions about religious beliefs. I don’t think there are too many people that I want knowing all this info about my daughter.
Aside from learning techniques and standardized testing, this is unfortunately what common core is all about — psychological assessments to determine how/where students will fit into society as they grow older and enter the workforce. It is most likely the reason Bill Gates has poured so much money and effort into common core and why everything is technology based (Google Docs and Google Drive track students even outside of the classroom). I would strongly advise opting out of Common Core so you and your children can flat out refuse tests like this. There are FB groups you can join for more info. When the time comes, I’ll be opting mine out.
We refuse to do those surveys!! They have them in Ks. My granddaughter was handed one and just sat there in class and handed it in/submitted it blank
It’s all part of SEL…. embedded in Every Student Suceed Act passed by Congress…”they” want to change your child’s attitudes and beliefs so they line up with UNESCO…
Data mining.
Can you imagine if they asked
if you were born into a family that was taught to believe in God?
Were you taught to pray? How often?
Do you still consider yourself a Person of Faith…?
Has your beliefs changed from when you were born?
Etc…
And if at the end they DEBRIEFED YOU and said…
: you probably are more agnostic, than a true believer, your answers indicate you struggle with principles of an all knowing being, since He does not intervene in suffering you are not sure He exists…etc
Based on your answers…you get “debriefed” about your religious preferences?
Wow. It is horrific.
I can’t believe some parents think this ability to question students like this…is good…is wow. Not okay.
Schools interviening or trying to educate you and debrief you in matters of HOW YOU THINK about any subject…is terrifying.
Subjective education is NOT education at all.
You all know you can opt out of the standardized teste right? My kids do not take these tests ever! I do sllow them to take the MAPS testing.
I never let them because of the strees fir kuds, and teachers are punished with these tests.
I don’t play ball with MAPS testing anymore either…doing the usual BS data mining (jumping to ridiculous conclusions) inappropriately with our children with this one now too.
I mean seriously…??
Social engineering/social emotional learning and behavior modification.
For the information of any who are interested, this survey is called and IAT which stands for Implicit Association Test. It is entirely anonymous and was created by Harvard. This means that the teacher of this class has no way to access her students results. In my training to be a teacher we have focused extensively on multicultural education. It is important to be aware of different cultures, even if you don’t agree with them. Sociology is the exact class I would expect this to come up in.
Please research data mining.
It’s not the teacher anyone is worried about.
They are COLLECTING THE INFORMATION and it WILL be in the child’s RECORD!!!
Depending how the child answers, if they don’t like the answer they WILL COUNSEL the child until properly INDOCTRINATED!!!
This is their means of “changing the child. ” The point of school today under Common Core is mindset-shaping away from traditional, family, patriotic, biblical values and toward the government-approved mindset of social justice ideology. Bit by bit. Drip. Drip. Drip. Save her while you can.
This perversion doesn’t stop just with sex Ed. They are also destroying the history of our nation. They are now teaching globalism. Parents need to watch very carefully what they are teaching. They truly are not interested in educating your children. Propaganda and reeducation.
Here is a post from a friend of mine:
NEW from the DFEReady Colorado Stands on Children to Succeed Campaign and
….The Colorado Moneyball for Government “Education Leadership Council” 2030 plan for K-12 education as workforce training .. “competencies”.
When you read this remember Dear Hillary and Betsy Devos’ creation of a joint Dept of Ed/Workforce idea? ….and ESSA pathways to Competency Based Education and k12 workforce data badges? Colorado came up with this plan all on their own?… wonder how many states might have 95% similar plans. 😦
Powerpoint presented to State Board Thurs Feb 14, 2019: https://tinyurl.com/ColoEdPlan2030
From 58 page Report https://tinyurl.com/ColoEd2030Report CBE…”Competency-Based Education & School Finance: Lessons from Online and Community-Based Courses. …innovative approaches to relevant, experiential learning opportunities and social emotional learning, shifting away from the focus on seat time. Relevant research, studies, and resources”
ROI…”Establish monitoring and evaluation systems to ensure that education funding is directly spent on meeting its intended student outcomes and, to the extent possible, share return-on-investment information with all stakeholders.”
REPLACE TEACHERS? …”Consider the cost increases, savings, or reallocations associated with responsive systems, in terms of different staffing models, technology needs, advisor roles, professional learning, etc. •Continuously learn from the implementation of various agile learning models with the goal of determining the best use of resources for developing agile learners.”
COMMUNITY SCHOOLS- PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS — FAMILY DATA / ASSET MAPPING.
“Research also confirms that children and youth who participate in well-structured and well-implemented community programs and activities reap a host of positive benefits in a number of interrelated outcome areas—academic, social/emotional, prevention, and health and wellness.11The ELC’s Community and Family Partnerships Subcommittee focused on strategies that will allow communities of various demographics and areas of need to leverage family, community, and school partnerships in order to meet students’ essential needs. Discussions included topics such as the expansion of two-generation policies and ractices, learning more about integrated service models, like community schools, and facilitating community asset mapping in order to provide wraparound services for school communities.
…Nurture students’ physical, mental, social, and emotional health [and collect SEL data beacuse…] “According to the McKinsey Global Institute, by 2030, the need for basic cognitive skills and physical and manual skills will be far outpaced by the need for technological skills, higher cognitive skills and social and emotional skills.”
K12 WORKFORCE PIPELINE: CREDENTIALS and LIFELONG WORK-BASED LEARNING, aka Marc Tucker.
…The near future includes a wide array of jobs that do not currently exist, and technological advances ensure the loss of many jobs that do. As a result, lifelong learning has become essential, and our education system will need to support seamless and frequent re-entry. If the state of Colorado is to prepare its students for these changing workforce and learning demands, it must invest more in the educational attainment of all Coloradans at every level.17Even now, there are multiple educational pathways to good jobs:preparation inhigh school; postsecondary apprenticeships, certifications, and associate degreesthat lead to middle-skills professions;and careersrequiring at least a bachelor’s degree.18Each has value and deserves support. We must also address the persistent achievement and postsecondary attainment gaps associated with race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. A system that works for the future is one that works for all Coloradans. It is imperative for Colorado to leverage industry and cross-sector partnerships to bolster student-learning experiences and ensure that every student is prepared for successful transitions. Whether entering the workforce with a relevant industry credential…citing Marc Tucker’s “Building Blocks for a World-Class Education System”.
Be sure to look at the Gates Funded folks on the Committees and in the Acknowledgement section. https://tinyurl.com/ColoEd2030Report
Here is a post from a Minnesota anti-Common Core group:
Happening in Pennsylvania! Be on the watch for the compulsory age to eventually go lower. It doesn’t have to happen this year in every state. The states have the grant money already and are legislating to implement the federal policies of prenatal home visits, Universal preschool and, in some cases like Minnesota, Baby Birth to 3 education.
And here is the post that was quoted below:
Gov. Tom Wolf is pushing for a younger school start age. He’s hoping to lower the legal age children have to start 1st grade to 6-years-old. Right now PA doesn’t require kids to start first grade until they’re 8-years-old. Click the link to read more:
And here are some replies to this post:
What’s wrong with requiring school before 8? Key brain development occurs between 0 and 5 and some kids are not getting help at home. Unfortunately, some kids’ problems and abuse are being hidden at home.
Compulsory age in most states is still at 7, like Minnesota, not 8. If you’re speaking of kindergarten at 5, then 6 in first grade and 7 in second grade, yes, our society has been herded this direction and accepted it. However, requiring school at birth or the first birthday is akin to what statists and dictators had planned. We can easily see that throughout history as the little children were brought into systematic education well, it certainly sends up a red flag. Reminder: MACC is for local control not international or federal control over the states. We feel that parents, teachers, schools are the best deciders as they are closest to the community and kids. “Key brain development occurs between 0 and 5 and some kids are not getting it at home,” sounds a bit like what all the corporate foundations, non-profit think tanks are promoting. These ideas are fluid throughout our communities and nation because they’ve been heavily marketed. You certainly raise a plethora of questions for me. These ideas are coming through federal grants which will have to be implemented. It has no authentic springboard from the public here in Minnesota. These decisions are being made far, far away. Are you advocating placing all 1st year babies or babies at birth into schools or institutions?
At birth? This article is talking about kids starting at 6. I would think that this would require parents to either have kids in school or be homeschooling them by the age of 6. Eight years old seems a little late to me.
Oh, no. Perhaps I conflated two issues. But check me! I believe they’re talking about the compulsory age decreasing to 6 years old. The reason for my alarm is because we are seeing compulsory ages going down to match the agendas across the country to bring in prenatal home visits for everyone to the child’s 3rd birthday and baby birth to 3 in schools and head starts. These are bills now at our MN legislature being considered due to federal grants which the MDE and MHD have accepted. The compulsory ages will continue to get lower and lower to match all these bills based on grants.
This short article describes the ideology being pushed throughout the business world into acceptance of infants on up in schools.
I personally don’t want the government in my home for “the good of the herd.”. You can catch abuse by being a good neighbor and active in your community.
science says 7 or 8 is ideal. Mostly play before that age is best for the growing mind.
Here is a post from someone from New Hampshire:
SB 196, Relative to Non-Academic Surveys in Schools:
The full Senate will vote on the bill Thursday, February 14
CORNERSTONE POSITION: OPPOSED.
WHY: SB 196 would roll back a 2017 law protecting student privacy and parental rights. Instead of giving parents the right to “opt-in” before a non-academic survey is administered to their children in school, it would switch to an “opt-out” policy – meaning that if a parent doesn’t actively say NO, the school will administer the survey to the student. Read Cornerstone’s written testimony here
Urge your State Senator to overturn the committee
recommendation of “ought to pass with amendment” and instead vote INEXPEDIENT TO LEGISLATE.
IF you sent testimony to the Committee, please forward that to you State Senator.
Here is a post from someone from New York:
Does anyone have a Saratoga Springs High School students that was given, or asked to
fill this form out today or yesterday? We have been contacted by multiple parents with children in varying classes and grades that were given this. We have also been told when a student posted this on social media he was called to Principal Tsao’s office and forced to take it off of his social media. We also have been sent a video, but do not want to post it and call out one teacher when there were many that distributed this.
We have concerns that some of the information on here including religion and sexual orientation are private issues. Even more concerning is the use of the term “Retard” which is offensive. Lastly, some of the questions seem poised to highlight issues regarding confidence in teens.
Thoughts?
Saratoga Springs City School District
Saratoga TODAY Newspaper
The Daily Gazette of Schenectady
WTEN News Radio 810 & 103.1 WGY WRGB CBS 6 News, Albany John Gray- Journalist & Writer
And some replies to this post:
This is in conjunction with data mining…All of these questions are being asked in many Michigan Schools ..yet people don’t seem.to care.. The school system has indoctrinated Children for decades….and its in full speed ahead with ObamaEd… Parents should be bombarding their State. Capitals and not expecting a handful of Patriots to do the work for them without support.. This and so many other teachings are being used to control you government indoctrinated child.. wake up
maybe some parents should go the the principles office … I would already be there
Social engineering…proving to them that there is bias in the world…someone attached “grades” to each of these conditions
I dont think this is very productive… its creating a victim mentality…. This is telling young kids whether they are “privileged” or not…. this is then going to make the kids who get the “un-privileged” score self-esteem drop. How is that good? Also what does any of this have to do with school? And learning? You can shove this down their throats but you dont teach them how to balance a check book, change a tire, or file taxes ya know important adult thing?!
that’s not the purpose of school. Do you imagine the olden academic institutions teaching how to repair a wagon wheel? No. Those “adulting” skills have always come from living, not academics ffs. Stop expecting academic institutions to teach life skills that’s LITERALLY NOT THEIR PURPOSE.
School is for book learnin’, theoretical knowledge, not tires or taxes or balancing checkbooks per se.
if this was a basic survey without a scoring system and it was optional, I wouldn’t see an issue. now, to base this paper on a scoring system to find out about being privileged or not is absurd. my child would not be made to fill this out. instead, I would have them respond with a letter including a couple sentences for each question that stated how they feel about the topic and maybe stop bullying by finding out where the most division is or something. but to make it all about judgement is ridiculous.
Someone mentioned to me that Indiana is also trying to push for mandatory kindergarten:
Here is a post from Shannon Joy:
Pittsford parents & students invited to explore their white supremacy at this feel-good seminar sponsored by the PTSA!
This is for people who identify as white racists ONLY … so as not to offend people of color.
Good times.
Here is a post from the Common Core Diva in an Ohio anti-Common Core group:
Warriors, HR 280 from OH Rep. Beatty..will data track 5-21 yr olds in every youth sports group. In the name of injury prevention. National streamlined collaboration with said data, too.
Here is another post from Shannon Joy:
The point of a school board is to represent the taxpayers of Rochester. To simply dissolve the people’s representation and hand a public entity to Mayor Warren (aka Cuomo) is a complete bastardization of representative government.
Sadly – this kind of self imposed castration by locally elected school board members is all too common in NY and across the country.
The answer (imperfect as every political answer is) is MORE local control, neighborhood schools with parents & teachers in charge. Get Albany OUT of our classrooms.
And another post from her:
This headline is not accurate.
Every charter school is Common Core compliant to my knowledge.
If they say they’ve ditched it they are misleading you. They way to find the truth is to call the school and ask them if they’re administering the federal testing. Eventually they will admit they are. I’ve done it a dozen times with ‘Classical Curriculum’ charters. While they might be slightly less hostile to conservative America they are absolutely 100% compliant with ‘federal college & career standards’ AKA Common Core.
Charters have to administer the CC tests each spring and collect gross amounts of data in order to be eligible for federal funds. If they’ve tweaked the way they teach phonics that’s fine … but overall they are absolutely drenched in federal curriculum.
Just an FYI.
Here is a post from an anti-Commmon Core group:
our kids just had a survey- no notice to parents- 8th graders…supposedly college info…what do you want to go to college for, where etc…but hidden within it it was a lot of questioning regarding religious affiliations, “health care” needs, and lgbtq stuff….parents had no notification at all…and it’s a third party survey. My 8th grader said that in small print on bottom it stated that info would not be sold etc…yet it doesn’t need to be sold, they just acquired it free of charge through a survey…and much of the info asked should be privacy protected- so why are third party groups allowed to come in and “host” surveys to our students?
Here is a post from the Common Core Diva:
Breaking news:
Dreaded CCSS “queen”, Linda Darling Hammond is new CA Ed Head!
Here is a post from a Minnesota anti-Common Core group:
SIGN of the TIMES! “P” to “E” to “B”. When MACC was organized in 2013, all the grants were P-5 or P-20. “P” stands for preschool. Then within a year, grants went to “E” for early learning. Even one of our legislative committees was named “E-12 Education Policy.” Now the grants are for “B” for birth. This is the announcement for the Preschool Development Grant PDG B-8 and how much each start was awarded. December 2018.
Here is a post from the Utah anti-Common Core group:
I think all of the 14 NAY votes on HB118 “Incentives for Statewide Assessment Performance” deserve our heartfelt thank you’s! If you have a chance, please write a quick thank you e-mail.
Click on their names to get their contact info:
And here is a reply to this post:
Susan Pulsipher is too stuck in Obama’s ESSA- after I warned her a few months ago at a town hall, and she acted like she knew nothing about it, then come to find out she’s a CO-SPONSOR! Once pro-Federal Education implimentation, always pro-Federal education implimentation! She needs to be CALLED out!
Here is a post from Alice Linahan:
I ask you to please listen to the video below to hear for yourself about the real threats facing students in classrooms from Pre-K through the Workforce across America and how it ties specifically to Texas via Gov. Abbott’s Fast tracked SB10. Then, please click “Share” because either FB is blocking me from sharing or someone who does not want this information out is reporting me to FB. This would be a good video to send to Texas Senators and Representatives and their staff so they understand the full picture of what is happening instead of bowing down to the wishes of Gov. Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
And here are some replies to this post:
The COST for SB 10?
The Fiscal note for SB 10 states…
“The cost, timing, and institutional recipients of the grants authorized by the bill are not known. Costs of the grants may vary depending on the size, infrastructure, and existing resources of the member institutions.”
HOWEVER, of the 13 state funded university campuses that will create these “COMPREHENSIVE CHILD PSYCHIATRY ACCESS CENTERS”, the Legislative Budget Board published that…
“For illustrative purposes, the University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth estimated they would need approximately $1.8 million per fiscal year to implement the provisions of the bill related to access centers and workforce expansion.”
That’s just one of thirteen campuses currently listed in the bill.
Just look at the organizations that are “for” SB 10 – all stand to gain increased monetary benefits by establishing “COMPREHENSIVE CHILD PSYCHIATRY ACCESS CENTERS”
The South African psychiatric hospitals that were used as slave labor camps during Apartheid were a Public Private Partnership.
“Sec. 113.0105. GIFTS, GRANTS. AND DONATIONS. Authorizes the executive committee to accept on behalf of the consortium gifts, grants, or donations from any public or private source for the purpose of carrying out this chapter.” What???
Yep!
The committee also coordinates grants or other funding.
The MENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH PLAN will leverage additional funding to ensure “effective and targeted research”. They’re using our kids as lab rats while they’re on a government school campus.
Yup. There is actually an article about that being done by UTSW in conjunction with a school MH program in the DFW area. I’ll see if I can find it. I thought the original bill only allowed them to accept gifts, grants, etc. from entities that didn’t have a conflict. I was wrong. But truthfully, even if the individual consortium member doesn’t have a conflict, what about their department? Don’t they also have to worry whether their department will lose research money from ANY source? What that means to me is that the conflict of interest risk in the bill is incurable. They could go for complete transparency and disclose not only personal money but also research funding coming into their department. But of course that only works if people are honest, and if people read the annual report.
Thanks Alice! Another great education event that I am sure opened the eyes of more of our TX patriot friends. I hope you got to go into detail with them about how the “data” they collect from our children also includes “data” on the extended family via their questions re: gun ownership in the home! Think our 2nd Amendment warriors are not going to be happy about that sort of information being collected. Also, hope you were able to connect the dots on how many of the “shooters” were on the same medications that they are shoving down our kids throats and how this legislation will only increase that dangerous practice. As we know, many of our children are frequently misdiagnosed as ADHD/ADD and the drugs many are forced to take are of growing concern.
This bill would properly be referred to as the Texas Home School Expansion Act because it’s likely to further the Exodus from our public school system. Unfortunately it isn’t just limited to schools. It also contemplates tele-psychiatry access through your pediatrician’s office.
….and only if folks know. So we need to let them know!
Glad this parent fought back and that she got other parents to join in. Kudos to this mother and to Mass Resistance. Everyone across the country should emulate their example: https://www.massresistance.org/docs/gen3/19a/MR-CA-Shanda-Anaheim/index.html
Also, MassResistance, no fair-weather stinky RINO group, is an organization in for the long haul and doesn’t care what names the Regressive Left, its corproate allies, and the Republicans-in-name-only say about it or if they support them or not.
Utterly despicable the lengths they’ll go to improve those stupid test scores:
Here is a post from an anti-Common Core group:
I also think that the suburban schools that are “A” rated are not seeing the severe assignments, intrusive surveys, etc as often. I have been following CC since 2014 and have talked to dozens of parents and I noticed a trend…the poorer schools in lower income areas seems to see more of this far left radical stuff. People in the rated “A” schools were only seeing things that someone who knows what’s going on would pick up on. “They” need most of the youth, not all of it, so, my paranoid theory is that they figure there is more parent involvement in “A” rated schools so they don’t hit those schools as hard with the propaganda. Think about all the crazy shit people have posted over the years…radical indoctrination in homework assignments, prayers to Islam, etc….it’s not happening in the wealthier schools. ??
Williams College jumps on the white privilege brigade: https://www.breitbart.com/education/2019/02/13/williams-college-offers-workshops-so-faculty-can-process-their-whiteness/
Here is a post from a friend of mine:
Hmmm…Gates and Koch? We shall see.
: Koch network poised to scale up efforts to remake K-12 education
By James Hohmann
January 29
Brian Hooks, chairman of the Koch network, and Charles Koch, its main patron, speak to donors Saturday night during the Koch network seminar in Indian Wells, Calif. (Seminar Network)
INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — The donor network led by billionaire industrialist Charles Koch will launch a new organization next month to focus on changing K-12 education as we know it.
The effort will begin as a pilot project focused on five states with a combined school-age population of 16 million kids, but officials said Monday that they aren’t ready to identify them yet because they’re still finalizing partnerships with some of the country’s leading educational organizations.
The still-unnamed entity purportedly plans to focus on three buckets: changing public policy to address “the root causes” of failing schools, developing new technologies to promote individualized learning, and investing in teachers and classrooms.
The announcement came Monday at the end of a three-day seminar where 634 donors who have each committed to contribute at least $100,000 annually to Koch-linked groups gathered under palm trees at a luxury resort in the Coachella Valley.
The Koch team is modeling its amped-up education efforts on its successful overhaul of the criminal justice system, which began in friendly states before moving to the federal level. In that case, Koch World sought out unlikely allies and played the long game for years before any big legislation passed.
In the past, most conversations about education at these twice-annual Koch confabs have quickly turned into bashing teachers unions. So it was notable when Brian Hooks, the chairman of the Koch network, went out of his way to praise teachers and acknowledge that many have been picketing recently.
“For too long, this issue has been framed unnecessarily as us vs. them, public vs. private, teacher vs. student, parent vs. administrator,” Hooks told a ballroom of donors. “The teachers who have expressed frustration in the past several months are good people. I mean, they’re teachers. We all remember the positive impact that a teacher or several teachers have had on our lives. They’re expressing legitimate concerns. But the current approach means that nobody wins, so they need better options.”
Hooks recognizes that many will question their motives, but he said the goal is to “really shake things up” by “coming alongside concerned teachers” to “find a better way.” Teachers union leaders, who are closely aligned with the Democratic Party, have accused the Koch groups of trying to undermine traditional public schools. Koch and his allies say the system is broken and requires wholesale changes. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has been a longtime ally of the network.
“This is a tough one, no doubt,” Hooks said. “It’s a challenge that a whole lot of people look at and say is impossible. But we see a tremendous opportunity to unite people to help ensure that every kid has the opportunity to succeed.”
Philanthropist Stacy Hock of Austin, a major Koch donor who has been funding education efforts at the state level in Texas for years, says that traditional forms of classroom instruction encourage “soul-crushing” conformity, and she has emerged as an outspoken advocate of “personalized learning.”
“Families are getting more and more comfortable with experimenting and taking risks,” she said on the sidelines of the meeting. “Education should be getting way, way better and way, way cheaper, but the opposite is happening.”
Hock said the new Koch initiative, as it ramps up, will identify what’s working at the local level and push for those things to be replicated elsewhere. “What we’re seeing all across the country are little flames,” she said. “What I don’t yet know is how to throw gasoline on all those flames.”
?
Thousands of teachers march in the rain through Los Angeles earlier this month while striking for smaller class sizes, better school funding formulas and higher teacher pay. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images)
— The network’s pivot toward education is partly because a personal interest in the subject by Chase Koch, Charles’s 41-year-old son. He is an executive in the family business who has been taking on a more prominent role inside the network his dad began convening in 2003. Chase’s wife, Annie, a neonatal nurse by training, opened a private school in September called Wonder on the campus of Wichita State University. It’s initially for elementary-age children, and the plan is to phase in middle and high school programs. There’s lots of experimentation going on, with the goal of letting children pursue what interests them the most and not follow a strict curriculum.
— Previewing their K-12 push, Koch strategists pointed to research being conducted with their financial support by Ashley Berner at Johns Hopkins University’s Institute for Education Policy. Her main interest is expanding what she calls “educational pluralism,” which is when the government funds all types of schools, including explicitly religious ones, but does not necessarily run them.
“Berner points to examples such as the Netherlands, which funds 36 different types of schools, from Islamic to Jewish Orthodox to socialist,” the Charles Koch Foundation notes in a summary of her work. “Alberta, Canada, funds homeschooling along with Inuit, Jewish, and secular schools. In Australia, the central government is the nation’s top funder of independent schools. Other countries with plural school systems include Denmark, Finland, Germany, and Sweden.”
“It’s the democratic norm around the world. In pluralism, choice and accountability are two sides of the same coin,” said Berner, who wrote a book in 2017 called “Pluralism and American Public Education: No One Way to School.” “We’ve got to start supporting politicians who are willing to make compromises. Americans are tired of the battles between charters and district schools; these take up too much energy and resources. A pluralistic system doesn’t pit entire sectors against one another.”
— Koch will continue to make heavy investments in higher education as well. The Charles Koch Foundation already provides financial support to more than 350 colleges and universities, which has generated controversy and pushback on many campuses.
John Hardin, the director of university relations for the Koch Foundation, said the network’s investments in education “laid the intellectual foundation” to achieve the public policy changes the donors wanted on criminal justice. For example, the donors helped finance an Academy for Justice conference that convened 120 scholars on criminal justice to talk about their research. “This is how you get it done and change the paradigm,” Hardin told donors during a presentation. “The Academy for Justice is changing the debate.”
A booklet provided to donors, which outlined some of the network’s major investments, highlighted support for the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, which produces research that is routinely cited by allies in government. “Mercatus scholars are re-shaping the field of regulatory economics and changing the debate over rightsizing the administrative state,” the handbook noted.
— The Koch network is also setting its sights on publishers of pricey textbooks. The foundation, which is part of the network, is supporting OpenStax at Rice University, which produces books that are available for free online to students. Charles Koch put up the money for a series of textbooks about business, including ethics, entrepreneurship, principles of management and organizational behavior. David Harris, the editor in chief of the project, said in an interview that Koch gave his team full editorial independence, that the books are all peer-reviewed and that OpenStax receives financial support from liberal foundations, too, including the one funded by George Soros. About 30 free open-source texts are now available, and more are in the pipeline.
— The goal of all this investment is to change “the trajectory of the country.” Kevin Gentry, a top Koch lieutenant who works for Koch Industries, told donors yesterday that they can have perhaps the greatest impact by focusing on civil society initiatives like these. “Those of you have been coming to these meetings for a long time know we’ve gone through a lot of ups and downs,” he said. “A lot of times we would say, ‘Okay, this was good, but were we really … changing the trajectory of the country?’ … We feel like a couple of years ago we began to turn the corner, but now is the opportunity to scale.”
— One reason the wealthy donors are so amenable to investing so much in education is alarm about the next generation. Recent polling shows younger people have a more favorable impression of socialism than capitalism. “The younger generation is less sympathetic and less understanding of limited government conservatism,” said Art Pope of North Carolina, a fixture of Koch meetings. “They’re more sympathetic or more willing to give not just social justice but outright socialism a chance. … It used to be you didn’t have to have a serious conversation about socialism in American politics. Now you do. So what is the appeal of that? How do you message?”
— Many progressives are dubious and skeptical of the Koch rebranding effort, which I wrote about in yesterday’s Daily 202. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) wrote in: “I’m not convinced by the Koch network’s new charm offensive; nor should your readers be. Until we know how much the Kochs, and the 634 other mega-donors who joined them, are spending on dark-money campaigns to block action on climate change, undermine public unions, confirm obedient judges, and cut their own taxes by billions of dollars, we should view their latest PR effort as more obfuscation. … If Charles Koch’s top goal is ‘uniting with people across the whole spectrum,’ he should unite them around honest facts and science, not deceitful campaigns funded by dark money.”
— While they may still share many of the same goals, especially when it comes to judges and regulations, there is mounting tension between the Koch network and the official GOP apparatus. My colleague Michelle Ye Hee Lee, who covers money in politics and has also been here for the donor meeting, scoops that the data firm aligned with the Republican National Committee does not plan to renew a data-sharing agreement with the Koch network for the 2020 cycle, after years of working in tandem to enrich voter files for GOP campaigns and state parties. Henry Barbour, the chairman of the RNC-backed firm Data Trust, said the split was prompted by the network’s decision not to endorse President Trump for reelection in 2020 or to support Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) last fall.
“In the past, [the Koch network’s data operation] i360 was a consistent supporter of the Republican and conservative ecosystem, so we have worked with them to help win elections, but that has changed,” Barbour said. “I don’t see a path where we have an agreement with them in the 2020 election cycle.””
I also find this interesting.
k-12″ Wonder” school in Kansas. “There won’t be traditional grades, report cards or homework, Koch said. “:
Looks like Ohio State University and Planned Parenthood are working together: https://www.breitbart.com/tech/2019/02/14/ohio-state-university-hosts-sex-week-and-planned-parenthood-events-for-valentines-day/
Alabama A&M University joins the legion of thought police colleges: https://www.breitbart.com/tech/2019/02/14/alabama-am-says-verbal-comments-based-on-age-are-harassment/
Here is a post from a Utah anti-Common Core group:
URGENT!! HB118 that allows teachers to use SAGE/RISE assessment for course credit and grading has passed the House with overwhelming support and is in the Senate. Legislators are rationalizing that giving credit doesn’t penalize those that opt out. Those of us who’ve experienced how this “carrot” to take the tests has been turned into a stick need to speak up now, and loudly! We’ve asked that you share your stories with your Reps, but if you will post them here in the comments we can show that it’s not an isolated incident, but there’s a pattern of manipulation.
Homeschooling is being threatened in Iowa: https://caffeinatedthoughts.com/2019/02/iowa-house-bill-requires-health-and-wellness-checks-of-homeschoolers/
I’m glad that AFA PA helped stop this plot by Planned Parenthood and AccessMatters to get clinics in this school: https://afaofpa.org/archives/news-release-school-board-makes-right-decision-and-says-no-to-planned-parenthood-partner/
Here is a post from an Ohio anti-Common Core group:
What good is that? This company supports Common core!
Here is a post from a friend of mine:
Nevada… Character Lab is not your friend.
As long as we are talking about snakeoul on twitter….
Alison Hawver McDowell check out this. Employed by cooney.
Seriously, he’s saying teach kids to “walk around while using their iPods.” And teach on screens outdoors. Wtf
Here is a post that was shared in a Colorado anti-Common Core group:
HB 1032 Comprehensive Sex Education Passed today. Republicans, fought the good fight on the house floor all day. They argued for the rights of parents, the safety of our students, and presented factual information. Minority Leader Patrick Neville, Rep. Shane Sandridge, Rep. Lori Saine, Rep. Dave Williams, Rep. Kim Ransom, Rep. Steve Humphrey, Rep. Tim Geitner, Rep. Susan Beckman, Rep. Perry Buck, Rep. Mark Baisley, Rep. Terri Carver, and Rep. Matt Soper and many others joined in. They speak out for the best interests and way forward for Colorado. Thank you all who gave testimony, who wrote letters and sent emails, and made phone calls
Looks like Indiana is pushing a mental health “education” bill: https://freedomproject.com/the-newman-report/1004-indiana-education-bill-seeks-mental-health-control-of-all-kids#.XGgQhnxSSWE
Here is a post from a Maine anti-Common Core group:
Write a short letter to the Maine Education and Cultural Affairs Committee before 9 am on Monday the 11th. Tell them to vote NO on LD 151. Include your name and town. Your voice matters.
Here is a post from a friend of mine from Georgia:
Jane Robbins: “Do we want our children to be flagged by the government based on an algorithm when we don’t even know who created the algorithm or what factors go into it?”
patriotmongoose 
