Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/315828
Feature T he intent of the standards is to arm our students with the critical thinking skills they will need for a successful life. These standards recognize teachers as the classroom experts, but some districts have failed to embrace the spirit of collaboration and are creating imple- mentation nightmares. This series of articles reviews what's happening as educators grap- p l e w i t h t h e n e w C o m m o n C o re State Standards — as well as the field testing of the new Smarter Bal- anced Assessment. Read about the struggles, challenges and successes educators are facing in communi- cating with parents about the new standards, finding resources and making sure their voices are reflected in local policies. Find out if these members' experiences featured here match yours. We'll start with Felipe, who was not a fan of the Common Core. Felipe Lemus worried implement- ing something so different would jeopardize the steady improvement he's been seeing in his students, who are below grade level. After three days of professional development, he began trying out some Common Core lessons on his third-graders at Calwa Elementary School. Some went well; others did not. The Fresno Teach- ers Association (FTA) member says he sometimes feels like he's "swim- ming in a big ocean with no raft or life jacket" in the transition, and fre- quently stays up until 2 a.m. looking for lesson plans and curriculum. He feels stressed. Carrie Forrest felt panicky about the new education standards. "I thought, 'Yikes, something new! It's not going to be easy.'" The second-grade Santa Rosa teacher took a deep breath, signed up for workshops, and began collaborating with colleagues and trying out lessons plans. It hasn't been a walk in the park, but she thinks the CCSS offer new opportunities to be creative in the classroom. That's exciting and a little bit scary, admits the Piner-Olivet Educators Association (POEA) member. Math teacher Katja Jackson felt pretty positive about changing over to new standards. She grew up in Germany, where students routinely collaborate with each other and explain their work, just as the CCSS encour- ages. She thought her Fairfield High School students would enjoy a critical-thinking approach. Some do, but Originally not a fan of the Common Core, Felipe Lemus finds mixed results with the CCSS lessons partly because his "students are so used to rote memorization, they are resistant to exploring concepts and problem-solving in math." 10 M AY 2 0 1 4 Educator 05 May 2014 v1.6 int.indd 10 5/16/14 3:21 PM