Debbie Good

I grew up as the daughter of a career U.S. Air Force fighter pilot. I lived in eight states, one U.S. territory and one foreign country, and I attended 12 different schools.

I learned to make friends quickly and to get along with people of different ethnicities and cultures. However, my way of life had its costs.

Chief among the costs were the educational adjustments I had to make every time we moved to a different state. Along with unpacking and making new friends, I had to adjust to the fact that my new school was never teaching the same thing at the same grade level as my old school. Sometimes curricula were off by an entire grade level.

In 2011, I was teaching seventh-grade math and serving on the Springfield Public Schools Math Curriculum Development Committee. We were reviewing the math Common Core State Standards and developing a curriculum to teach to these standards.

I was glad to see reasoning and analytical thinking emphasized, and fewer topics covered in greater depth than in our previous standards. I was also glad that mobile families would not have to struggle with disparate state standards as mine had.

Implementation of new standards, Common Core or not, are bound to produce some growing pains. Other states that have implemented Common Core have had problems with new textbooks hurried to the printer before sufficient editing, and new tests given before students and teachers have had time to prepare.

But I have been disheartened to see the misinformation that is being circulated about the Common Core. Here are some of the more common myths:

Myth: Common Core is a federal takeover of education.

Fact: Common Core State Standards were not developed by the U.S. Department of Education, and adoption of them is not a requirement for receiving federal funds.

Myth: Common Core is a national curriculum.

Fact: Common Core standards are standards, not a curriculum. A curriculum is a mix of textbooks, resources and activities to help students meet established standards, and is developed by teachers and administrators at the state and local level.

Myth: Common Core will require more high-stakes testing.

Fact: In Missouri, Common Core Assessments will replace the Missouri Assessment Program tests, given once a year, in English and math. No additional testing will occur as a result of Common Core.

Myth: Common Core will require states to collect private student information and report it to the federal government.

Fact: Common Core standards will not require any additional data collection. The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has been collecting student data since 1989. Only aggregate data, with the exception of certain data on migrant students, is forwarded to the federal Department of Education.

For more on Common Core State Standards and their implementation in Missouri, go to www. missourilearningstandards.com andwww.corestandards.org.

I hope that reasonable people will see the benefits of common state standards to students in a mobile and global world, and not be fooled by those who spread misinformation for political gain.

Debbie Good lives in Springfield.