I asked Dr Vince Edmonds for Marshall County Superintendent what his thoughts were on Common Core. I deal with a lot of candidates on a regular basis, and am used to not getting replies when questions are asked. However, Edmonds surprised me with a very well-written, balanced and thought-out response on the issue, putting far more effort into answering the question than was even necessary, just to effectively communicate his views. I was VERY impressed by his response, and as the other candidate has not even replied to or interacted with my identical question on their page, I would heartily recommend Mr. Edmonds for the position. I do not live in Grant right now, but my family does, and my niece attends DAR school, so I do have a vested interested in this. It looks like he is both intelligent and open minded on the issue, and I would love to have someone with his transparency and eagerness to discuss issues on any school board. Here is his response in full: Mr. Edwards, thanks for the question. As you know, concerns and thoughts regarding the Common Core Standards (CCS) are rather divisive. I just returned home from teaching a college course. As an adjunct professor for many years now, I have been concerned about an over-reliance on rote memory among many college students. I think we can all agree that critical thinking skills are very important. Too often, students in K-12 and even in higher education are able to be successful through committing information to short-term memory and then regurgitating information when prompted by objective type questions. I believe this is one reason (certainly not the only one) why many students struggle in higher education and perhaps even with real-world application of knowledge once leaving college. So, I see value in some of the goals of the CCS. However, with this noted, I have serious reservations with the CCS. First of all, I strongly believe in local control of education. I believe that local taxpayers should retain more control over the education of their children. States and local school districts have a better understanding of the students being taught. I will also note that while I do believe we would do well to invest more effort into students developing critical thinking and higher-order thinking skills, we must not forget that basics are needed so that higher-order skills can develop. I believe in the professionalism, creativity, and ingenuity of the classroom teacher. I am concerned that the CCS devalues the teacher as a professional. Without any doubt, our teachers and students are facing a most difficult transition. I know that many parents are extremely frustrated. I am concerned that because of CCS, more parents are considering home schooling. Public education belongs to the public - to the community and, if stakeholders are concerned, we need to listen and create a meaningful dialogue. As you know, I am a candidate for superintendent of Marshall County Schools. I have been a Marshall County BOE member for the last two years. I have encouraged our central office staff and school principals to have parent meetings before the end of this school year to focus only on the concerns related to the CCS. I do think it important that we remember the CCS is not a curriculum per se but rather a set of standards of what students should master. Therefore, school districts have some measure of flexibility regarding the delivery of a curriculum. I do understand that the curriculum and textbooks have to be aligned with the CCS. However, local school districts need to support teachers in thinking out of the box to deliver the curriculum that best serves their students. Rather than defaulting to the exemplar text lists, I believe local school districts, administrators, and teachers would do well to choose materials based on the specific needs and interests of students in their communities. I am also concerned that the CCS devalues careers not requiring a college education. Our society/economy needs skilled professionals and we would do well to do more toward preparing students for such careers and make sure we are not creating barriers or somehow marginalizing the importance of the career-technical programs. A potential upside of the CCS is preparing students to be competitive in a global economy and job market. I think we all see the trend toward global competition and we do need to make certain our students are afforded the same preparation as students in other states and even other countries. Also, I will add that I see some tensions between the CCS and other federal mandates. For example, if the CCS testing does not allow for modifications, where does that leave us with students with specials needs. One can debate whether or not the implementation of the CCS will save or demand more tax payer money. Personally, it seems to me that there are initial higher costs (e.g. replacing textbooks and increasing technology to meet demands of online testing) but save money going forward (e.g. eventually less money for the testing process and professional development for teacher). I think without a doubt school districts will need to place a much greater emphasis on Pre-K programs as early childhood education becomes more important to later success with demands of the CCS. I apologize in advance for rambling a bit. I did not want to delay my response. Also, if it seems I am conflicted over the CCS, it is because that is the case. I know that one size does not fit all. I know that I am not the type of educator or leader to wait on things to role down hill to let me know what to do. I firmly believe in state control of education and with local school districts knowing what is best for their students. However, I really like what I hear from our state superintendent of education (Dr. Bice) and many from the state department when they emphasize creativity and thinking outside of the box when deciding how to educate to the CCS. Like most people I think, I believe it will be years before we know the impact of the CCS. Since the state has adopted the standards along with our own Alabama standards, local school districts now have the task of delivering a high-quality curriculum aligned with those standards and work toward that end through listening to the concerns of teachers, parents, and students. I believe 46 or 47 states have adopted the CCS. Therefore, if the true impact is improved college and career readiness, we must do all we can do in Marshall County to make certain our kids are on a level playing field and fully prepared to compete for jobs and do well in higher education.Although I could go on sharing my thoughts (pros and cons) regarding the CCS, I will leave it here. I will be glad to respond to follow-up questions. Sorry for the length. This is an important topic with many layers. Thanks.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 02:29:59 +0000
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