The new Common Core Standards (CCS) are  a set of national standards that are implimented nationwide from kindergarten to high school.  Only five states have not yet adopted these standards. This year, 2013-2014  New York is considered to have fully implimented the new standards. The idea behind them is that a student in one state will be learning the same thing as a student in another state.

       Along with these new standards are exams to assess how these new standards are being taught. The standardized tests are managed by two companies, The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC). These two companies will receive  around $360 million dollars in federal funds to make the state exams.

          According to the Engage NY website the incoming freshmen will see the most changes.  “All students first entering Grade 9 in the 2013-14 school year or thereafter must be provided with a high school English course of study aligned to the CCLS and pass the new Regents Exam in ELA (Common Core), which is designed to be administered at the end of Grade 11, to meet graduation requirements. Any student who in the 2013-14 school year or thereafter, regardless of grade of enrollment, begins his or her first commencement-level math course culminating in a Regents Exam in June 2014 or later must take the New York State CCLS Regents Exam in mathematics that corresponds to that course, as available, and be provided with Common Core instruction. Most typically, this first course will be Algebra I.”

        One of the greatest differences betwen the Common Core Standards and the old standards is the emphasis on the thought process that goes along with the outcome.  Esspecailly in math, where even if the answer is wrong a student can get partial credit.   A youtube video that went viral hightlights the frustation that many teachers have with the new standards.  The video shows Amanda August the curriculum director of Grayslake explaining tthe focus of the common core math.  In the video she tells the teachers that it even if the students said 4 x 3=11 but the reasoning was correct and the student was able to explain the answer process that it was good.  Ms. Kenny a math teacher  is following the new standards in her Algebra class. “The Common Core takes simple concepts and make them more complicted than they have to be, and they call it  higher order ‘thinking.’    It seems too intense. Even students that are conscientious seem more aprehensive than I have ever seen. ” said Joanne Kenny.

Math teacher Mr. Williams was also on the fence about the CCS, “I feel like it’s going to work at times but another time I feel like it doesn’t.”

For the English department, the CCA  based exam will  test good use of vocabulary, writing  and the students  ability to  synthesize information with an emphasis  on non fiction and rigor.   Higher level questions are also part of the CCS.

Mr.Burton, a foreign language teacher understands the new common core standards.  “The new Common Core is good if all the departments are on the same page. Also it would be good  if the students were on the same level the Common Core  varies in effectiveness for each student.” When asked if the changes in the new common core standards it will effect students learning, Mr Burton replied “ Its definitely raising the bar for students but in foreign language there is a certain level kids have to be on at the end of the year with or without the CCS.”