Define Common

Education "Reform” policies in New York are destroying any chance a child has to receive a well-rounded education.  The newly adopted Common Core State Standards (CCSS) put too much unnecessary stress and pressure on students and their teachers. The learning objectives for grade k-3 are developmentally inappropriate.

 When we have a set of standards designed for the common students where does that leave the student who is uncommon? By uncommon I mean the student who it may take a while to learn and grasp the concepts of what is being taught, the student who has emotional difficulty adjusting and the student who is disadvantaged and worried if he/she will have dinner on the table that evening. We live in a society filled with uncommon people. Educators such as Michelle Rhee has stated regardless of a child's situation they are still expected to learn like everyone else and teachers are expected to teach those disadvantaged students like they would teach that common student. What defines the Common student? What traits does that common student hold?  We live in a nation where the common is not so common and teaching to standards that are geared toward the common student is setting our kids up for failure. 

How can we stop this madness when there is more corruption in our education system than there is Italians in the Maffia?