What I don't like about the common core is that it prevents the teachers from teaching a variety of subjects. I understand and know that in order to compete with the rest of the world, our math and literacy skills really need improvement. However, this is at the expense of social studies and sciences (not to mention the other subjects: foreign languages, music, art, physical education, etc.). Not everyone is going to come out of school looking for a job in math or literacy, so we need to better prepare these children for the real world in a more well-rounded manner.

I have a friend who teaches 2nd grade and they only have 30 minutes per day where they can teach social studies OR science and it has to include a literacy aspect. On Thursdays, it is a half-day, so she can't do the 30 minutes then. So basically, the students receive maybe 1 hour of social studies and 1 hour of science in the entire week, both of which are spent writing. She said she goes all year without doing any science experiments because she simply does not have time. I have a degree in sciences in I find that absurd! The United States' professional jobs NEEDS more people with science degrees!

Reply