Common Core sets achievable standards, says AOS 94 educator

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    DEXTER — There are numerous facts and fantasies about Common Core making the rounds on the Internet, local coffee shops and citizen’s groups.
    Matthew Drewett-Card, the curriculum coordinator for Alternate Organizational Structure (AOS) 94, said he wanted to “get through the noise and get to the facts” at the First Friday Forum hosted by the Dexter-Dover Area Towns in Transition (DDATT) on May 2 at Abbot Memorial Library in Dexter.

    Drewett-Card outlined the origin of Common Core, noting that Maine is the only state in the nation that has proficiency-based diploma standards written in the statutes (LD 4722) that go into effect Jan. 1, 2017. “So this year’s freshman class will have to reach those standards,” he said.
    Drewett-Card said that many people refer to Common Core as a curriculum, when, in fact, it is a standard. He brought up the example of a physical examination when a doctor takes a patient’s vital signs and compares them to what’s considered normal health standards. “Then they’ll create a treatment plan — sometimes prescriptions, physical therapy — based on what they find out,” he said. “But the treatment is not the standard itself.”
    Drewett-Card, a runner, compared standards to a marathon. “A marathon is 26.2 miles. If I ran 20 miles of that marathon, would the people at the end of the race say ‘Good enough?’ No, they wouldn’t. What if you got to the 10-yard line of a football game? Would they just give you six points?” he asked. “The standard is the finish line. The curriculum will vary.”
    The AOS educator also explained that a lot of the Maine Learning Results tests were “heavily based on content — and content is very important. But what’s more important is to be able to use that content — and that’s what the Common Core standards do,” he said. Instead of “ask and recall, students will be asked to analyze the content,” he said.
    Another myth is that Common Core is a mandate from the federal government. “Not true,” said Drewett-Card. “The states have volunteered to use the program. There are incentives connected to the program like the ‘Race to the Top’ funds. One of the criteria (to qualify) was to have a high set of standards. They said that Common Core would be one of them, but you don’t have to use it.”
    Drewett-Card also pointed out the flaws with the traditional grading system. “A grade of 70 percent is good enough for passing, but what about the other 30 percent,” he asked. “We should be saying, ‘You already know this much. Let’s take you further.’”
    Jim Bunn of Garland, who graduated from high school 50 years ago this year, said that in his view, there needs to be more enthusiasm and “passion” for teaching. “We’re dealing with very young people, giving them the basics for a certain kind of job. And that’s not our purpose,” he said.
    Drewett-Card agreed. “Learning takes place at different paces for different students. So the challenge is to find a way to accommodate the vast learning styles and needs of every kid to move them along,” he said.
But he added that in his view, “This staff (at AOS 94) is phenomenal. Their only goal is to find ways to make kids learn.”
    More information about Common Core is posted at www.maine.gov/doe/commoncore.