The main "standards" in CC are critical thinking and written expression. Most homeschoolers have been teaching that for ages already. The problem with CC is that teaching these standards really cannot be standardized. In order to teach these skills well there needs to be individualization and the wholes CC program is moving in the exact opposite direction. Jackie when looking at the math, CC in it's perfect state does require the kids to know the facts and to be able to use them. The thing with all the visuals and alternative methods is they are trying to hit different style of learner and force everyone to learn that way. One of the big problems with that is that students who benefit from that style are normally the minority. Teachers should be able to choose from a variety or resources which would allow individualization at least at the classroom level. You can still have a main resource/textbook but teachers should be allowed to adapt for a class. These alternative methods should be additions to math programs but should not be cannibalizing traditional math programs. As for colleges many of the top colleges are steering away from things like the SAT and ACT. This has been a trend for awhile now and I do not see it changing (nor do folks I know who work for colleges). They are looking more towards the grades and extracurricular activities. This is one of the reasons homeschooled students are being "recruited" by my colleges and universities. Colleges for the most part really do not care what the content kids are learning but instead skills. Even when colleges require certain classes it is not really because of the content of the classes but instead making sure the student is putting in the most effort and challenging themselves. Schools will still end up doing placement tests no matter what. That is because colleges themselves have different standards and different requirements based on how rigorous their particular programs are. What could end up happening (and this is where I think the trend might end up) is that colleges will actually prefer the non CC students because they may see them as having a better chance of developing the needed thinking skills for college. I really feel that CC is going to negatively effect our country's educational system. It is making education even more top heavy and more of an assembly line. Education at it's best is directed on the lowest local level. The way they are trying to move education is to make "happy" little workers, those who have the "skills" to enter the workforce. This philosophy makes everyone equal when we know that not everyone has the same skills, abilities or interests and it is impossible to detect these at the early ages that some CC implementation plans would do. When looking at how "they" are looking to push cc I really feel like we are traveling down a road that leads to a society described in Brave New World and I find that very frightening.
http://www.setonmagazine.com/mom/co...w-advanced-placement-course-redefines-history Less Facts, More Feelings: New Advanced Placement Course Redefines History
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...s-direct-ties-to-common-core-and-theres-more/ You Won’t Believe What We Found in Another ‘Widely Adopted’ High School Textbook
Two very conflicting messages here: "Common Core dumbs things down, doesn't prepare students well, and is rejected by most people" And.. "Ivy League schools require high scores on Common Core tests, and want those common core AP classes on the transcript for admissions."
"As for colleges many of the top colleges are steering away from things like the SAT and ACT. This has been a trend for awhile now and I do not see it changing (nor do folks I know who work for colleges). They are looking more towards the grades and extracurricular activities." WRONG. I can't help falling off my chair a little that gave me such a chuckle. No offense mschickie, but you need to do a little more research on this, cause you're dead wrong...and it would really stink for a home school parent to read your post and be under that particular false impression if they have an academically ambitious kid. Here's a Forbes list of the top 100 Universities and Colleges in the US: http://www.forbes.com/top-colleges/list/ You can use the tool at the top to see how your local university/college ranks nationally. (just put the name of the school you're interested in the search field in the upper right). I challenge you to document that a single one of the schools in the top 100 does not Require, and give heavy weight to ACT/SAT scores. Most of these schools chuck your application without even looking at it....if you don't meet their minimum scores. In fact, if you click on any college in that list, it shows the range of SAT scores that admissions typically considers for that particular school. (here's a little ACT/SAT conversion tool if you're curious http://www.act.org/aap/concordance/pdf/reference.pdf ) Other things they like to see: AP courses, 3.8+ GPA, high class rank, VERY challenging curriculum in high school, leadership roles in EC's, community service/volunteerism, and a REALLY well-written essay. Again...maybe you're not interested in a "Top College". Maybe a smaller private college, or second tier state school completely meets your needs...and there's nothing wrong with that. Community College is also affordable, has some great quick career tracks, and trade schools are great, too. (I always remind the kids in the family that a plumber makes more money than 85% of people with four year degrees) Nothing wrong with ANY of these! Art schools play by different rules, too...singer, actor, artist? Often, it's all about what's in your portfolio, grades be darned...awards for your art matter. But if your kid WANTS to go to a truly top academic school....there is no way around doing well on the SAT/ACT. That's just reality.
How many university/colleges are there in this country? There's more than 100 in Ohio alone. My children don't need to be in one of those "top 100". And there's plenty of others where you can get just as good an education. And possibly better, depending on your major. Yes, CC "dumbs down" the curriculum. It ties the hands of teachers to where they will be severely limited in how they teach, and cannot take the time some children need. (But then, half of the problem is that not all students are academically gifted, and too much emphasis in this country is put on academics. That's not going to change, because the universities make big money on those who drop out!) With more and more states rejecting it, it WON'T last.
Yes, there are more than 100 colleges in this country. But mschickie had said "TOP colleges" are moving away from ACT/SAT....and that's simply not true. I absolutely acknowledged in my post that there are lots of other options. But the fact remains...if your kid wants to go to the best of the best academic schools...there is no way around doing well on the ACT/SAT which are both common core aligned. Top schools will also expect to see AP or IB courses...which are also common core aligned.
Here is a quote from Brown's site: How does Brown evaluate standardized tests? We look at your test scores along with other information about your academic promise as we read your complete application. I did not say that the schools are no longer using them but there is a trend away from the importance they had 20 years ago. I think stressing about the test is ridiculous at this point. I think kids who are taught logic and critical thinking will do well on pretty much any test they are given which is why I include logic in my curriculum.
From Brown's undergraduate admissions page: Standardized Test Results We require either the SAT Reasoning Test and any two SAT Subject Tests or the ACT (with writing component). Official test results must be sent directly to Brown from either the College Board, which administers the SAT, or from the American College Testing Program, which administers the ACT. To have scores sent to Brown, you will need to provide our institutional code numbers: For the SAT, Brown's code number is 3094 For the ACT, Brown's code number is 3800 If you go to sites that track the test results of students who apply to Brown...you'll find that the average scores of students who are accepted to Brown are between 29 and 34! http://collegeapps.about.com/od/collegeprofiles/p/Brown_profile.htm Those are SERIOUS scores. If the only kids getting offered admission have those scores.... tell me how important they are? Average ACT score nationally is about 21. No kids go to Brown with a 21. One in a thousand kids with a 24-28 will get offered admissions if he/she brings another exceptional skill (rare athlete/award winning artist/rare band talent). 99% of kids offered admission to Brown have a 29-34 ACT score. That's not random. Downplaying the importance of the scores is romantic, but unrealistic. It might not be entirely fair....but you simply don't get in to Brown without VERY competitive scores. This is true of ALL top ranked colleges and universities. There might be a "trend in moving away from test scores" for second tier colleges that are experiencing declined enrollment and have an 80%+ acceptance rate. But when there are a limited numbers of accepted students and lots of competition to be accepted...ACT/SAT scores are a VERY IMPORTANT criteria for getting in.
That is ONE SCHOOL. Obviously, they only want the very brainy kids. That's fine. Rachael would have qualified, but that means nothing to me. A school that requires such a strict standard is really not what I want for my children. Those 100 "top schools" mean absolutely nothing, unless academics is your entire life.
Those 100 "top schools" are headhunted by top companies that offer excellent wages and benefits. Those 100 "top schools" have a reputation for excellence that will help get your kid a job anywhere in the states... and often, anywhere in the world. Those 100 "top schools" offer opportunities in current research that other schools don't. Those 100 "top schools" have the lowest unemployment among their graduates. Those 100 "top schools" provide meaningful networking opportunities and placement support. Those "top schools" will get you better job offers, paid grad school through employment, and other opportunities only offered to the best people in their fields. Most people go to school with the idea of learning a field, graduating, and finding gainful employment. Best Schools = Best Chances.
I know Rachael is brilliant, and would have done very well at a "top school". I also know you folks picked a very good school that she loves..and that she's earned some excellent opportunities there and been headhunted for a great job. But my point is...and you know it's true... Scores matter to colleges. Fair or not...they do matter. If there is fierce competition for admissions? The test scores make the first cut in applicants. And there has been no "trend moving away" from this practice.
No. There's much more to life than going to one of those "top 100" schools. My children don't need the "opportunities" that come from cut-throat competition. Rachael's not-so-high university will get her plenty of opportunities, especially since she has an internship through Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Faythe is interested in Marine Biology. There's only two universities in Ohio that offer that (which actually surprised me; I didn't expect ANY!!!), and neither of them are in that "top 100" list. I guess if you want to be a CEO and want to make millions one of those "top schools" is fine. But that's not my goal, and I don't think it's my children's goal, either.
Never claimed it was for everyone. Not once. Have made multiple posts, in fact, about the value of other paths. But....the draw of "Top schools" is not all about wealth. What if your kid's dream, her passion in life...is to create genetic solutions to diseases? Or to tweak new materials to make new replacement heart valves? Or to create new ways to fix nerve injuries and paralysis? Or to modify the aids virus to cure kids of leukemia? Those specialized opportunities....are not always about being a CEO. Often, they're about following a specific dream at the ONLY university that supports the technology, the research, the teachers who can get you there. Just as there is nothing wrong with multiple different other career paths... There is nothing wrong with dreaming big and fighting for the best opportunities.
No, you're right. There's nothing wrong with dreaming big. We should be encouraging big dreams. But you CAN obtain those big dreams just as easily at one of those other schools. I know things have changed since I went to college. I was accepted into a good Christian school for two years (I was afraid of leaving my sheltered life and going straight into a state school), then dropped out for one year and transferred to one of the top schools for education in Ohio. I had no trouble getting into either one, regardless of the fact I only had two math credits (Alg. 1 and Geometry) and two science credits (Gen Sci, and Bio). However, I did have LOTS of English credit (four my Senior year alone), four years of French, and countless activities...Explorer Scouts, volunteer work with physically handicapped adults, deaf interpreting at church, Youth Group, sports editor of the school paper (ranked third over-all at a high school press competition, including an Honorable Mention for one of my stories), drama.... And I was on a "college track" as far as graduation goes! My "weakness" in math and science didn't matter. And it hasn't hurt me when I got out of college. I had an excellent job teaching physically handicapped children, one that I really enjoyed. And I am excellent when it comes to being in a classroom. As I say, I KNOW things have changed, but I don't think for the better. I don't believe Alg. 2 should be REQUIRED for graduation, nor advanced sciences. Don't tell me how it's "needed" to get into a "good" school (heck, it's "needed" to get into just about ANY school now!!!), because while it's "required", it isn't "needed". Yes, if you're Rachael and want an engineering career, you need the math and physics. But not for education (at least, non STEM teaching!) or English, or Library Science or Philosophy or languages or.... Faythe wants Marine Biology. We're getting her through Alg. 2. She's had Chemistry and she's doing a Marine Biology class on her own. The co-op Biology teacher has lent her a dissecting kit and microscope, and I bought Apologia's Marine Biology dissecting kit (which contains things like a dog shark and a star fish), and she's quite excited about that. Phillip...? Well, we'll wait and see!
A lot of big dreams you CAN achieve at smaller or less competitive schools. Most, in fact. BUT.....and this is my whole point....there's a big difference in medical research at a second tier medical school, compared to somewhere like John Hopkins or Harvard. University of North Dakota medical school is not going to offer the student support, funding, research opportunities, reputation, or employment opportunities.....that Mayo Clinic Medical School does. There are certain specialties that can ONLY be studied at a handful of Universities. Just sayin....sometimes it's not "just as easy" to get what you need close to home. Sometimes what you need is specialized and only available from the top schools. On a side note...Marine Biology will require Calculus and Physics....so Faythe should work hard on her math and think about adding Pre-Calc. Also, a SCUBA diving class would be a serious perk for her and open some great opportunities.
Just because the kids are getting the top scores does not mean that is what the school is judging by. You see those scores because really who applies to these ivy league schools, the top kids and those kids will do well on the test no matter if they had a common core education or a traditional education. They are the kids who can think critically and have the motivation to study for these tests. Bright kids can really learn to do well on any type of test. The other thing is there are kids who score lower (sometime significantly) than then average and still get in just as some kids score higher than those scores. I am friends with folks who work at or have family who work at a variety of colleges(all different levels from community to ivy league). It used to be that if you did not meet certain test scores you were not even considered for many of these colleges, now the test are just one part and in many cases even at the top school (not all) it is becoming a minor part in the entire package. This is why I said it was trending away from the importance of the SAT/ACT not that we were there yet. I still believe that as CC moves a head that schools will continue the trend to downplay the importance of them, some many end up removing the requirement but that probably will not happen in this decade. It is wise to build up the curriculum and the extra curricular activities to make and attractive overall package to the school. Many schools are still very competitive and you need to distinguish yourself in order to get in. Now scholarship programs are an entirely different beast. Many of them are based solely on these test scores but I have seen more and more moving towards essay submission as their means of determining merit. This means an education that is strong in writing skills is likely to be beneficial to those seeking college scholarships.
Essay submission does play a big part, but often you need a certain test score to be considered. Rachael went to a weekend scholarship competition at a Christian school she was really interested in. She had a half-tuition scholarship based solely on her test score/GPA, but the competition could have won her 3/4 to full tuition. She had to submit an essay, and was interviewed. She didn't get more than the half, which meant we couldn't afford there. But she's very happy with where she ended up!
