Common Core State Standards

  •   Myth vs. Fact 



    Myth:

    The Common Core is a curriculum. 

    Fact: The Common Core State Standards are a set of expectations for what students should know in each grade. They are not a curriculum. Our state and local school districts will continue to develop their own curriculum, and select textbooks and other instructional materials. 




    Myth:


    The Common Core is a “federal mandate.” 

    Fact: Tennessee chose to set higher expectations for students by first adopting higher standards in 2008 and then adopting the Common Core State Standards in 2010. Our state’s policymakers, legislators, business leaders, and parents were concerned that Tennessee’s students would not be prepared for the workforce. In today’s economy, competition for jobs comes not just from across town but from across the country. 




    Myth:


    The Common Core is a “dumbing down” of Tennessee’s standards. 
    Fact: The Common Core State Standards are more rigorous than Tennessee’s old standards, focusing on more critical thinking and problem solving skills. Because of this, it is expected that Tennessee’s students may, at least at first, have lower test scores since the bar is being raised in the classroom. 




    Myth:
      The Common Core is a “threat to academic freedom.” 
    Fact: The Common Core gives teachers more freedom than they have had in the past. With fewer standards to teach in each subject, teachers can now spend more class time devoted to making sure every student understands the material. 




    Myth:
    Tennesseans do not support the Common Core State Standards. 

    Fact: In a statewide opinion poll commissioned by the State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) in September 2012, almost six-in-ten voters said academic standards in Tennessee’s public schools should be raised, and almost 80 percent of voters supported the Common Core State Standards after hearing just a brief statement about them. To date, more than 200 organizations across Tennessee, representing hundreds of thousands of Tennesseans, have joined the Expect More, Achieve More Coalition. This group of Tennessee organizations believes that high expectations for students, through the Common Core State Standards, are critical to our state’s future. 




    Myth:
    The Common Core will mean that personal, identifiable information about a student will be shared with the federal government. 

    Fact: Any information tying a student to their educational data cannot be legally sold or released to anyone without parental consent. Federal law protects the privacy of student information and educational records through the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Tennessee will not release student information that would be in conflict with federal law. 




    Myth:
    The Common Core is the first step toward nationalizing education. 

    Fact: The Common Core State Standards are part of a state-led effort to give all students the skills and knowledge they need to succeed. The federal government did not develop the standards. Individual states choose whether or not to adopt these standards. 




    Myth:
    With the Common Core, students will no longer be reading works by Mark Twain or The Great Gatsby. 

    Fact:  With the Common Core State Standards teachers will continue to teach literary classics, as they always have.  The Common Core places a greater emphasis on informational text (like the Gettysburg Address, for example), as research shows that students are currently reading little informational text in school. In addition, the bulk of the reading students will do in the workplace and in education beyond high school is likely informational and non-fiction texts.