opinion

Graham: Why Bryant opposes Common Core

I retired from public education in 2001 after having served for the better part of 38 years in a number of administrative and leadership roles, both in Mississippi and Louisiana, most of which included curriculum development and teacher in-service in virtually every subject area. In addition to Teacher Evaluation and Student Evaluation models, I am familiar with many curriculum models and can assure the public that Common Core is completely sound educationally and needs to stay in place.

Common Core came into being in 2009, not by the federal government or President Obama, but by The National Governor's Association which included, among others, two prominent Republicans, Jeb Bush and Chris Christie. Forty seven states have adopted Common Core as their state standard. Each state has a substantial degree of control over how the program is designed and administered. There is nothing partisan or un-American about Common Core and the program is endorsed by a number of prominent organizations including the U. S. Chamber of Commerce.

Common Core contains benchmarks (or standards) in two areas: Mathematics and English–Language Arts. The curriculum that flows from these benchmarks is designed to improve student's literacy and college or career readiness. Is the curriculum tougher than what we have provided before and is the process of instruction often different? The answer to both questions is "Yes", but that is not necessarily a negative quality.

The curriculum in both subject fields is chock full of higher order thinking skills. That is a plus for students who plan to attend college and seek leadership roles in their future career. But for the Governor, they is a dangerous element. Students might actually begin to ask questions about why Mississippi is last in the nation in so many areas that really count and then begin to discuss how this can be changed for the better. These students might actually support changing the current governor for someone else. No wonder he opposes Common Core.

It is easier to mislead citizens when they are poorly educated and ask few questions. Given Common Core, even a third-grader might ask the following questions of Gov. Bryant:

1. I have this huge boy who sits next to me in class who is trying to grow a beard and is always popping pimples. He is really not a bad kid. He is just slow and can't pass the state test. How can we help him before he drops out and goes bad?

2. Why do you give millions of dollars away to your rich buddies when many students in the state are without textbooks and some have to actually walk to school?

3. Why did you treat those Hispanic children who were staying temporarily at a church facility a few months ago with such disdain? Don't we send missionaries to South America to recruit children to win them into Christianity? Do you actually like children?

Our talented young people are leaving this state in record numbers, largely due to a repressive political and economic environment and they need to be able to perform at the same level as young people from other states. What better way to prepare them than to match up with a curriculum that high-achieving states use.

The opposition by the Governor to Common Core is really not about curriculum issues nor the welfare of our children or state. Bryant's opposition to Common Core is just one of the power plays he has used to undermine Public Education to place it under his immediate control where he can dispense patronage positions and sponsor legislation by special interests who fund his political activities. He has already made great headway in undermining Elementary and Secondary Education and the Department of Education and has moved to replace the retiring Directory of Mississippi Community Colleges, Dr. Eric Clark, with a political operative who falls short of mandatory requirements for that position. With the departure of Dr. Hank Bounds as Commissioner of Higher Education in Mississippi expect Bryant to make another power play toward our four-year colleges and universities.

Bryant can be stopped and public education saved if the members of the Legislature start representing the citizens who elected them instead of bowing to the Governor and asking his blessing for every breath they take. You may think things are bad now, but they will only get worse with Bryant in charge.

Harold Graham, Ed.D., is a native Mississippian and resident of Decatur. He is a retired educator, a genealogist, local historian and writer. Contact him at graham17222@hotmail.com.