BY PAT LAVINS/GUEST COLUMNIST 

A famous quote about education comes from John Dewey who said, “Whatever the best and most privileged parents have for their kids school should be the baseline for all kids.  Anything less undermines our democracy.”

This educational reformer died long before the implementation of Common Core Standards. Yet it is an education reform that he would have embraced because he would recognize that Common Core Standards (CCSS) are a set of shared goals and expectations of knowledge and skills that a student will need to be successful in the global environment.  As an advocate for an education structure that strikes a balance between delivering knowledge while also considering the interests and experiences of the student, he would be a strong proponent for Common Core.  He would be perplexed as to why a small minority cling to myths..

Sadly, even though we are in the 21^st century and are alleged to be in the information age, there are some who form opinions with no factual basis..  Some of the myths about Common Core are:

MYTH # 1 Common Core Standards take away control from local school boards, parents, teachers and students.

FACT # 1  No rights of any individual or organizations with a focus on education are diminished by implementing Common Core Standards..  Since there is no Federal or State control, local educators have the freedom to design a program that is most beneficial for their constituency.  Nor is it a part of a one world government plot as conspiracy theorist Glenn Beck has stated.

MYTH #2 Common Core Standards amounts to a national curriculum.

FACT: The standards are not a curriculum.  They are a clear set of shared goals and expectations for what knowledge and skills will help our students succeed.  Local teachers, principals, superintendents, and school boards will continue to operate as they do now in developing lesson plans and tailor instruction to meet individual needs.

MYTH # 3  Adopting Common Core will bring all students down to the lowest common level of student in a specific classroom.

FACT: The standards are built upon the most advanced current thinking about preparing ALL children.  The implementation of standards will reduce the current disparity of education from state-to-state.  It will also help to neutralize some of the negative external effects such as childhood poverty.

MYTH # 4 The Common Core Standards are a liberal/Obama/Federal initiative.

FACT:  Not a single Federal official was on the work teams and feedback teams that developed the standards — although there were quite a few experienced teachers.  The Common Core Standards have always been an initiative led by state officials and superintendents across bipartisan lines.

In February 2010, President Obama said that he might tie funds from the Federal Title 1 program to adoption of the Common Core standards, but the administration never followed up on that plan.  The administration provided incentives but did not force states to adopt the standards.

MYTH # 5 Implementing Common Core Standards will increase the burden on the taxpayers.

A survey released in September 2011 by the Center on Education Policy identified that inadequate funds for implementation were a major challenge.

FACT:  The experiences of 45 states that have already implemented Common Core Standards validated that it can be done without any tax increases.

Additionally, the migration to Common Core Standards has been approved by the National Governors Association and the U. S. Chamber of Commerce.  This is because it is obvious to those organizations that there is clear need for setting goals and objectives for our teachers in concert with increased emphasis on accountability. These factors are deemed to be essential if the United States is going to be competitive with nations such as China which have adopted similar education approaches decades ago.

The benefits of Common Core Standards are abundant.  They include assurance that a child can progress academically even if they lack parental support or a stable home life.  Since the standards were identified by the best in the country with the highest international standards, we can have a future where we are producing the best education possible.  The needs of college ready students will be met.  The needs of those who must  get good paying jobs without a future academic structure will also be met.

It is an old cliché but it is still relevant today that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over again and expecting different results.  Thus, we should not allow a small minority to be a roadblock to making major improvements in education in the 21^st century. It is urgent that our children receive the best education possible if the USA is going to remain a dominant power on the world stage.