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https://youtu.be/LQ8Nr3_2724 https://youtu.be/LQ8Nr3_2724 Often the war on white privilege manifests itself as preventing white success rather than helping PoC

by desine 6y ago

https://youtu.be/LQ8Nr3_2724 https://youtu.be/LQ8Nr3_2724 Often the war on white privilege manifests itself as preventing white success rather than helping PoC. Families that help their children with math homework have been irritated that students often get no credit on math homework if they use the older arithmetic methods. Rather than allowing students to use any valid mathematical principles to learn, children are forced to use a new system that (in my opinion) generates extra work to achieve the correct result. I dated a teacher many years ago, long before the political climate shift, and she constantly ranted about how common core was slowing her students down. At the time I didn’t understand much (and didn’t ask her to elaborate much), but it’s been interesting seeing her rants validated the last couple of years. Common core makes sense when a student struggles with the traditional methods. But forcing all students to use it, and it’s historical background of being driven by racial issues, is a damning sign that it’s intentionally holding high performers (often White or Asian) back.

benjohnson 6y ago
It also harms parents that only have a small amount of time to help their child with homework by pulling the rug out from under them. The parent's own knowlage is no longer of any use. I have enough time to get the nuance of common core and help my child but plenty of others don't have that luxury of time.
threatofrain 6y ago
The Common Core for math just advances the curriculum forward by 0.5 years, and for any particular section, such as for some subject at some grade, the specification can be read in maybe 5-10 minutes. (I mention math specifically because it's recently been a topic of discussion with "non-racist math".) Khan Academy, for example, conforms to the Common Core perfectly. In the Age of Google, it shouldn't be hard to summon the relevant passages which are problematic so that everyone can discuss them. But the vagueness of critique is a tell that someone doesn't care to lead with detail.
- shiftpgdn 6y ago
  This absolutely isn't true. Ask any parent whos children are doing common core math. It doesn't help much of the coursework and wording is nonsensical. A lot of it reminds of me communications we would get from our South Asian team at one of my old jobs.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
monocasa 6y ago
I'm not sure how you came to the conclusion that education is this zero sum game, and that by intentionally helping less privileged students, they're holding more privileged students back. For instance on the math side, a focus on numeracy rather than rote memory gives students without access to extra out of school resources another set of tools to approach later math classes on their own. On top of that, a focus numeracy also helps out privileged students as well and IMO actually teaches math rather than just arthimetic. It'll actually be useful in an age where everyone has multi ghz calculator in their pocket. Everyone wins. This whole discussion reminds me of the push back against New Math, where the changes in education were described by some as a soviet plot. No, we just keep making improvements to how we teach each generation, using the data we got from the previous gens. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Math https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Math
- desine 6y ago
  Nowhere did I imply education was a zero sum game. What I did mention was that students who were able to comprehend mathematics using the traditional arithmetic techniques were not getting credit for their work, because the education system was forcing a new thought model for learning elementary math. The fact that this new model, Common Core, was specifically designed to reduce privelege (and not "help those struggling with math"), and the fact that many students, parents, and educators find it less logical, should raise concern for all of us. How does "everyone win" when students who understand math are failing tests because they're not using an absurd roundabout method of multiplying numbers?
  - monocasa 6y ago
    > Nowhere did I imply education was a zero sum game. You did, by implying that an emphasis on less privileged students harms more privileged students, and that this was in fact the goal of common core. You continue down this assumption further in your post. > What I did mention was that students who were able to comprehend mathematics using the traditional arithmetic techniques were not getting credit for their work, because the education system was forcing a new thought model for learning elementary math. The whole point is to demphasize lucking into or remembering the right answer, but demonstrating true mathematical understanding via different forms of symbol manipulation. Memorizing times tables doesn't help students when they have a computer measured in 10s to 100s of GLOPS in their pocket, but a deeper understanding of numerical relationships does. They don't get credit for their assignment, because they didn't do the assignment, or fulfill the assignment's goals. > The fact that this new model, Common Core, was specifically designed to reduce privelege[sic] Giving less privileged children more tools to understand higher math takes nothing away from more privileged children. > How does "everyone win" when students who understand math are failing tests because they're not using an absurd roundabout method of multiplying numbers? Because the point of the assignment isn't teaching them multiplication, it's to teach them numeracy. Just because parents (and a lot of K-5 teachers) were failed in that regard doesn't mean we should lower the bar or continue teaching in ways that don't prepare students for the modern world.
tester756 6y ago
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQ8Nr3_2724 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQ8Nr3_2724 wow

by desine 6y ago

benjohnson 6y ago

It also harms parents that only have a small amount of time to help their child with homework by pulling the rug out from under them. The parent's own knowlage is no longer of any use. I have enough time to get the nuance of common core and help my child but plenty of others don't have that luxury of time.

threatofrain 6y ago

The Common Core for math just advances the curriculum forward by 0.5 years, and for any particular section, such as for some subject at some grade, the specification can be read in maybe 5-10 minutes. (I mention math specifically because it's recently been a topic of discussion with "non-racist math".) Khan Academy, for example, conforms to the Common Core perfectly. In the Age of Google, it shouldn't be hard to summon the relevant passages which are problematic so that everyone can discuss them. But the vagueness of critique is a tell that someone doesn't care to lead with detail.

shiftpgdn 6y ago
This absolutely isn't true. Ask any parent whos children are doing common core math. It doesn't help much of the coursework and wording is nonsensical. A lot of it reminds of me communications we would get from our South Asian team at one of my old jobs.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]

monocasa 6y ago

I'm not sure how you came to the conclusion that education is this zero sum game, and that by intentionally helping less privileged students, they're holding more privileged students back. For instance on the math side, a focus on numeracy rather than rote memory gives students without access to extra out of school resources another set of tools to approach later math classes on their own. On top of that, a focus numeracy also helps out privileged students as well and IMO actually teaches math rather than just arthimetic. It'll actually be useful in an age where everyone has multi ghz calculator in their pocket. Everyone wins. This whole discussion reminds me of the push back against New Math, where the changes in education were described by some as a soviet plot. No, we just keep making improvements to how we teach each generation, using the data we got from the previous gens. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Math https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Math

desine 6y ago
Nowhere did I imply education was a zero sum game. What I did mention was that students who were able to comprehend mathematics using the traditional arithmetic techniques were not getting credit for their work, because the education system was forcing a new thought model for learning elementary math. The fact that this new model, Common Core, was specifically designed to reduce privelege (and not "help those struggling with math"), and the fact that many students, parents, and educators find it less logical, should raise concern for all of us. How does "everyone win" when students who understand math are failing tests because they're not using an absurd roundabout method of multiplying numbers?
- monocasa 6y ago
  > Nowhere did I imply education was a zero sum game. You did, by implying that an emphasis on less privileged students harms more privileged students, and that this was in fact the goal of common core. You continue down this assumption further in your post. > What I did mention was that students who were able to comprehend mathematics using the traditional arithmetic techniques were not getting credit for their work, because the education system was forcing a new thought model for learning elementary math. The whole point is to demphasize lucking into or remembering the right answer, but demonstrating true mathematical understanding via different forms of symbol manipulation. Memorizing times tables doesn't help students when they have a computer measured in 10s to 100s of GLOPS in their pocket, but a deeper understanding of numerical relationships does. They don't get credit for their assignment, because they didn't do the assignment, or fulfill the assignment's goals. > The fact that this new model, Common Core, was specifically designed to reduce privelege[sic] Giving less privileged children more tools to understand higher math takes nothing away from more privileged children. > How does "everyone win" when students who understand math are failing tests because they're not using an absurd roundabout method of multiplying numbers? Because the point of the assignment isn't teaching them multiplication, it's to teach them numeracy. Just because parents (and a lot of K-5 teachers) were failed in that regard doesn't mean we should lower the bar or continue teaching in ways that don't prepare students for the modern world.

tester756 6y ago

>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQ8Nr3_2724 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQ8Nr3_2724 wow