I’ve written about Common Core before. It has been sold to the public as a “states based initiative”, but the reality is far from it. In fact, some states that initially signed on to it have pulled out and there more ready to follow suit. Utah blogger, Christel Lane Swasey, recently posted some important talking points about Common Core. She makes an interesting point in that people get caught up in the stated goals of Common Core without understanding what it is. She refers to a recent poll taken in her home state. When asked about the so-called “goals of Common Core”, without even using that term, responses were generally favorable. However, according to an article published by Utah Policy, “But use the words ‘Common Core’ in a poll question, and BAM!, you get very different responses from Utahns”.

To me that isn’t surprising - the establishment of high standards is a good thing. However, as Swasey so eloquently puts it, “Focusing on the actual standards themselves is as foolish as focusing on rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.  Good or bad, the standards, like deck chairs, will soon be in an uncontrollable, different place”.

Here are some of the problems with Common Core according to Swasey: 1) The standards are not coordinated by the states but by private, unelected organizations in D.C. which have copyrighted the standards; 2) The standards-creators are official partners with the federal government in creating Common Educational Data Standards that can be used to track students in state, federal and corporate data banks, thanks to the recent federal alteration of Family and Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA); 3) the standards are unamendable by states and that there is, in fact, no amendment process by which any participating state could alter or influence future versions of Common Core; 4) special interests make millions from education tax dollars, due to schools now being essentially forced to purchase the standardized books and test infrastructures; 5) in some states the Common Core standards are lower than those already in place.

The slogan for Swasey’s blog is “Education Without Representation”. It’s a catchy phrase. Here in West Virginia, Common Core was approved by the state’s Board of Education (WVBOE), an unelected body appointed by the governor. On its website, WV Against Common Core refers to the WVBOE as “the fourth branch of government” and describes it as “unaccountable to the people that fund them”.

Also on its website is a link to an article written by Don Surber that appeared in the Charleston Daily Mail last October that begins, “West Virginians spent $750,000 for an independent review of their expensive and underachieving public school system in 2012. The report boiled down to 18 words: ‘We have encountered no other state that insulated its education system so much from gubernatorial — or voter — control’ “. Education without representation indeed.

Initially, 46 states adopted Common Core, but several have since pulled out. Additionally, Pennsylvania has “paused implementation” pending further review and New York has put it on hold until at least 2022. The momentum for repeal is building across the nation as bills are introduced in many state legislatures, including West Virginia, aimed at repealing Common Core.

The bill in the house, HB 2184 has been referred to the Education Committee of which Del. Amanda Pasdon (R - Monongalia) is the chair. According to the bill’s summary, “The purpose of this bill is to discontinue the use of common core standards and assessments in the state”. Speaking recently on the Tom Roten Morning Show on radio station WVHU, Pasdon said that repealing Common Core “isn’t the right option for West Virginia…because as soon as we passed it we would completely defund education…we would lose all federal dollars”. So far, she hasn’t let the bill come out of committee.

Strangely enough, in 2012, with the Democrats in control of all committees, Pasdon co-sponsored legislation (HB 4390), according to the State Journal, “With House Bill 4390, not only would stalling Common Core assessment implementation and the addition of new national standards be possible, but pulling out of Common Core altogether”. This appears to be a quite a flip-flop.

Further, I’ve done a lot of digging and I can’t find one instance where a state that has pulled out of Common Core, and there have been several, and lost all federal funding - I can’t even find an instance where a state lost any federal funding. The federal government tried to retaliate against Oklahoma for pulling out by rescinding its waiver of No Child Left Behind requirements. However, it quickly saw the problems with that action and has restored the waiver. I’m open to be proven wrong, but there appears to be no factual basis for Pasdon’s claim.

Pasdon notwithstanding, in West Virginia opposition to Common Core is a Republican initiative. However, the Central Committee of the Washington State Democratic Party has issued a resolution condemning Common Core - more irony, since that is the home of Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, who has provided significant funding for the development of certain aspects of Common Core. In Utah, it is the Republicans. According to NPR, “there’s a growing backlash to Common Core, and conservatives and liberals increasingly are voicing similar concerns”.

Says Swasey, “Both the Republican and the Democratic parties in various states -and even the Chicago Teacher’s Union — have written resolutions condemning Common Core”. She follows that up by saying, “if you believe in local control, in free and independent academic thought, and if you want parental aims met -as opposed to big-government-big-corporate aims, then Common Core is not for you”. It’s not for me - and if it’s not for you, you might want to give Del. Pasdon a call.