Drape's Takes

Our state Board of Education meets tonight to discuss the extent to which we - as a state - will be adopting or ignoring the emerging Common Core State Standards. They've invited public comment on the issues. Here's what I've written on their Facebook post, knowing the kind of right-wing thinking we're often dealing with in the great state of Utah.

The Common Core State Standards are neither distributed by Satan nor designed to send our unique state into a tailspin. Rather, they provide a collective and consistent understanding of that which students are expected to learn, so we all can then focus precious resources on topics that matter most.

Essentially, there are two key reasons I fully endorse Utah’s adoption of the Common Core:

1. If Utah students are to compete with students in other states, we’re better off playing by the same rulebook. (What kind of advantage would the Jazz have when playing the Lakers, if in LA points are scored differently than they are in Utah?)

2. The near nation-wide adoption of the Common Core has already improved the quality of curriculum materials immensely, and will continue to do so in years to come. Giving publishers a target that is common across all states facilitates an increase in competition for educational dollars (good for learners in a free-market economy) while eliminating the need for extraneous solutions (bad for those who insist upon going their own way).