Sunday, July 28, 2013

Train the Trainers



I attended a two-day workshop last week developed by Florida DOE and held on multiple dates throughout the state.  Most of the presenters were classroom educators who were tasked and paid to pass along to representatives of K-12 schools the major points and some example lessons from the Common Core Standards.  Prior to the workshop, we received an email requesting that participants download two days of PowerPoint presentations and all of the handouts and to bring a laptop to the workshop.



Before I go on, it’s important to point out two principles of Common Core.



  • According to corestandards.org, Common Core encourages inter-disciplinary collaboration and the integration of technology in a way that is “designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success.” 
  • Common Core Standards dictate that by 12th grade, students will be reading 70 percent nonfiction and 30 percent fiction. The idea behind a 70-30 split is that most nonfiction will be read in science, history, and social studies classes, where students would be using primary sources and learning to decipher scientific research.  English classes will retain their focus on literature.



Despite the push for interdisciplinary collaboration, hundreds of participants were divided into small groups based on subject area and grade level.  Although a few lesson examples were presented and practiced, most of the two days was spent listening to the presenters read the PowerPoint slides.  And since we had all downloaded the PowerPoint slides, we could see presenters’ notes like the following:



Presenters should take the time to create a Norms chart.  This may seem an unnecessary step but will help provide a frame for discussions and interactions.  It is just always a good way to start and helps build a focus and the beginnings of a sense of community. 
Throughout your two days together you will be providing opportunities for your participants to work together in different group configurations.  This often is uncomfortable for many adults so we want to agree upon how we will work together.
Label a sheet of chart paper:  CCSS Institute Group Norms.  As a group agree and write three to four, “We will ___________statements that reflect how the group wants to interact.  You may want to start the chart . . . We will be open to change our minds.  We will try to keep a sense of humor.  We will bring chocolate for the presenter each day :)
 
In addition to the lousy presentation, some of the information presented was incorrect.  Anyone who listeners or reads the news has heard at least some of the stink surrounding the implementation of Common Core and the fear that the classics will disappear from the curriculum. Some administrators might be directing English teachers to eliminate poetry and even Shakespeare so that students can read instruction manuals and other dry non-fiction.  I guess it shouldn’t be a surprise that this misconception exists in the rants of conservative talk-show hosts when my presenters incorrectly applied the 70/30 standard to the English classroom.  The literacy problem in Florida is deeper than one might think!



Common Core standards are superior to and more intuitive than the Sunshine State Standards.  There’s also the opportunity to join other states in the pursuit of these more rigorous standards so that America does not fall behind in the global economy. 



The implementation of Common Core Standards in Florida is costing the taxpayer millions of dollars.  Why is it that with all of the expense of this initiative, we educators can’t pull off a decent training seminar?





 http://www.corestandards.org/the-standards






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