allstaractivist note: What is Common Core? Common Core is a short name for a bunch of federal education standards that pretty much force teachers to teach a certain way. The federal government in collusion with private industry (fascism defacto) have agreed to give money to states that adopt the Common Core standards. Common Core is designed to make our children dumb, by frustrating and overburdening them with intentionally flawed methods that flat out don’t work.
Where is the book in which the teacher can read about what teaching is? The children themselves are this book. We should not learn to teach out of any book other than the one lying open before us and consisting of the children themselves.
Common Core is also an indoctrination program meant to instill Statism. It is a concerted effort on the part of the government to convince your kids that they belong first to the government, second to the you. It seeks to divorce kids from their parents and foster the belief that the government is more important than the family.
Why would the government and corporations do this, you ask? The answer, like it or not, is so that when our kids grow up they will be slaves to the ruling elite and the rest of the world (see last video “How kids react”). In short, Common Core is just one component of a massive, mult-fronted attack on America, her freedoms and her people. It is an integral part in a push toward One World Government.
Scoff if you will but just take an informed look around, is anything going right in our nation at this time? We are being conqoured just as the Bible has shown in prophecy. The United States with her freedom rich Constitution is an anathema to those who want total control over us. She stands in the way. If our children can’t think for themselves and don’t have solid academic skills, they will be easier to control by people who do.
If we lose the children, we lose the nation.
I advocate either Home Schooling, or a good private school like Salesian College Prepatory or Justin-Siena High School (Catholic, but there are others). If you choose the Home School option, you can use AP (Advanced Placement) courses and CLEP (College Level Examination Program) tests to get your kid a bachelor’s degree by age 16, employed in a career by age 18. An age when most are just graduating a questionable high school.
On another note…
In the second TAE video above,Texas Governor Rick Perry was recently indicted on some bullshit charges or rather, politicaly attacked using the criminal justice system for his opposition to Common Core and other things. His first charge was for “abuse of official capacity, a first-degree felony, in retaliation for threatening to veto $7.5 million in funding for the Public Integrity Unit, a state public corruption prosecutors department. ” His second charge was for “coercion of a public servant”, a third-degree felony. The coercion charge was dismissed as unconstitutional but the abuse of power charge is still hanging over his head.
Governor Perry pissed off the political establishment for participating in and advocating for too many liberty based causes, like the second TEA Common Core video above. They had to yank on his leash and show him that America no longer exists, that he better not be getting all misty eyed over it either.
Here’s what Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz had to say about Perry’s charges on Wikipedia; “The two statutes under which Gov. Perry was indicted are reminiscent of the old Soviet Union — you know, abuse of authority. The idea of indicting him because he threatened to veto spending unless a district attorney who was caught drinking and driving resigned, that’s not anything for a criminal indictment. That’s a political issue.” [18] He added, “it’s so important to put a stop to it now, to say the criminal law is reserved for real crimes, not for political differences where a party in power or out of power gets revenge against the other party. That’s just not the way to use the criminal justice [system].”[19] On August 16, 2014, Perry called the indictment a political move and an abuse of power, and vowed to fight the charges.[20] The Texas Democratic Party asked Perry to resign.[4]
allstaractivist note: Please rewind the below video (or view it on Youtube) and watch it in it’s entirety. The United Nations will usher in global education standards via this resolution, which will control every child’s “education” on the planet both public and private, as well as home schooled. This UN resolution is a component of the comprehensive United Nations Agenda 21. UN Agenda 21 will result in the global control of of us all under the Anti-Christ and his False Prophet. The above image of Baphomet instructing children correlates to an actual Satanic Temple called “The Prayer Room”, located in the New York headquarters of the United Nations. Are you getting the picture yet? The Holy Bible is tomorrows newspaper, today.
UN resolution urges States to monitor and regulate private education providers (02 July 2015)
In what is being hailed as a landmark resolution, the United Nations Human Rights Council has urged States to regulate and monitor private education providers as well as recognize the threat of commercialized education.
Eight international civil society organizations today welcomed a landmark resolution of the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) urging States to regulate and monitor private education providers and recognizing the potential “wide-ranging impact of the commercialization of education on the enjoyment of the right to education”.
The HRC is the leading global inter-governmental political body dealing with human rights. In the resolution adopted by consensus of its 47 members, the HRC has, for the first time, responded to the growing phenomenon of privatization and commercialization of education.
This phenomenon, and in particular the emergence of large-scale for-profit “low-cost” private school chains targeting poor families in developing countries, has received heightened attention from civil society organizations and UN expert bodies alike in recent months.
Camilla Croso, of the Global Campaign for Education, reacted: “the rapid, unregulated growth of private providers of education is already creating – and enabling – violations of the right to education, threatening to erase the last 50 years of progress in access to education. This resolution shows that States have realized that they must act now to regulate such providers – before it is too late.”
Sylvain Aubry, of the Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights elaborated: “Our research has consistently shown that privatization in education leads to socioeconomic segregation and discrimination against the poorest children in schools, in violation of States’ obligations, as was recently recognized in the case of Chile. The resolution adopted today, crucially highlights the obligation to provide educational opportunities for all without discrimination.”
The resolution demands that States“put in place a regulatory framework” that establishes minimum norms and standards for and “monitor private education providers”. Delphine Dorsi, of the Right to Education Project, commented: “This is a very welcome reminder of States’ obligations under international law to regulate private education providers, at a time when a growing number of education providers, in particular multinational education companies, are taking advantage of weak regulation in some countries to make profit to the detriment of parents and children’s rights”.
The HRC resolution also calls on States to ensure that “education is consistent with human rights standards and principles”. Angelo Gavrielatos, of Education International, explained: “The evidence is quite clear. The growing commercialization and privatization of education is undermining the right to quality education. Governments cannot be allowed to abrogate their obligation to provide quality public education for every child. As recognized in human rights treaties, education is a fundamental pillar for a dignified life and must be protected as such.”
Crucially, the resolution confirms that “education is a public good”. According to Tanvir Muntasim, of Action Aid International, “this is the third time within a year, following the May 2014 UNESCO Muscat Agreement and the May 2015 Incheon Declaration, where States have described education as a public good. It is a striking response to the actors that have been trying to reduce education to a private commodity, rather than a universal right.”
The HRC insists in the resolution on the “significant importance of public investment in education, to the maximum of available resources”. For Katie Malouf Bous, of Oxfam International, “Too many governments have neglected their duty to adequately finance education, leading to weakened public schools and increased privatization as the inevitable result. Serious and substantial investments to provide good quality public education must be the antidote to privatization.”
Finally, the resolution asks States to “support research and awareness-raising activities to better understand the wide-ranging impact of the commercialization of education on the enjoyment of the right to education”. Ian Macpherson, of the Privatization in Education Research Initiative, stated: “We have been working with partners over the past few years to research the social justice implications of the growth of private actors in education, and we stand ready to collaborate with States to implement this resolution and increase and strengthen research and dialogue on this crucial issue.”
“It is now time for all stakeholders to firmly take action to implement this resolution” concluded Tony Baker, of Results Educational Fund. “This particularly concerns States but also international institutions and donors, like the World Bank, that have been investing in for-profit, fee-charging private schools in recent years. These investments need to align with global and national efforts to achieve free, universal education for all to harness education’s power to break the cycle of poverty. Development actors, in addition to governments, must act in accordance with international human rights law.”
The organizations that welcomed the Resolution are:
- The Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
- The Right to Education Project
- Privatization in Education Research Initiative
- Results US
- The Global Campaign for Education
- Action Aid International
- Oxfam International
- Education International
Documents
• The resolution of the Human Rights Council can be found on: http://bit.ly/1IQEGAj
• A summary of recent concluding observations from UN human rights bodies on privatization in education: http://bit.ly/1QPZmlz
• The last report of the report of the UN Special rapporteur on the right to education on the commercialization of education: http://bit.ly/1CsI569
Contacts
Sylvain Aubry
Legal and policy adviser Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights |
Ian Macpherson
Privatization in Education Research Initiative |
Myths Versus Facts
Myth
. Common Core (CC) was a state-led initiative.
Fact
. The CC standards were initiated by private interests in Washington, DC, without any representation from the states. Eventually the creators realized the need to present a façade of state involvement and therefore enlisted the National Governors Association (NGA) (a trade association that doesn’t include all governors) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), another DC-based trade association. Neither of these groups had a grant of authority from any particular state or states to write the standards. The bulk of the creative work was done by Achieve, Inc., a DC-based nonprofit that includes many progressive education reformers who have been advocating national standards and curriculum for decades. Massive funding for all this came from private interests such as the Gates Foundation.
Myth. The federal government is not involved in the Common Core scheme.
Fact
. The US Department of Education (USED) was deeply involved in the meetings that led to creation of Common Core. Moreover, it has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the two consortia that are creating the national tests that will align with CC. USED is acting as the enforcer to herd states into the scheme (see next myth).
Myth. States that adopted CC did so voluntarily, without federal coercion.
Fact. Most states that adopted CC did so to be eligible to compete for federal Race to the Top funding. To have a chance at that money, recession-racked states agreed to adopt the CC standards and the aligned national tests sight unseen. In addition, the Obama Administration tied No Child Left Behind waivers to CC adoption, making it very difficult for a state to obtain a waiver without agreeing to accept CC.
Myth
. Under Common Core, the states will still control their standards.
Fact. A state that adopts CC must accept the standards word for word. It may not change or delete anything, and may allow only a small amount of additional content (which won’t be covered on the national tests).
Myth
. Common Core is only a set of standards, not curriculum; states will still control their curriculum.
Fact
. The point of standards is to drive curriculum. Ultimately, all the CC states will be teaching pretty much the same curriculum. In fact, the testing consortia being funded by USED admitted in their grant applications that they would use the money to develop curriculum models.
Myth.
The Common Core standards are rigorous and will make our children “college-ready.”
See video above “Arkansas Mother Obliterates Common Core in 4 min”
Fact
. Even the Fordham Institute, a proponent of CC, admits that several states had standards superior to CC and that many states had standards at least as good. CC has been described as a “race to the middle.” And as admitted by one drafter of the CC math standards, CC is designed to prepare students for a nonselective two-year community college, not a four-year university.
The only mathematician on the CC Validation Committee said that the CC math standards will place our students about two years behind their counterparts in high-performing countries. An expert in English education said that CC’s English language arts standards consist of “empty skill sets . . . [that] weaken the basis of literary and cultural knowledge needed for authentic college coursework.” She also suspects from her analysis of work done so far on the standards that the reading level deemed sufficient for high-school graduation will be at about the 7th-grade level. And CC revamps the American model of classical education to resemble a European model, which de-emphasizes the study of creative literature and places students on “tracks” (college vs. vocational) at an early age.
Myth
. The Common Core standards are “internationally benchmarked.”
Fact
. No information was presented to the Validation Committee to show how CC stacked up against standards of other high-achieving countries. In fact, the CC establishment no longer claims that the standards are “internationally benchmarked” – the website now states that they are “informed by” the standards of other countries. There is no definition of “informed by.”
Myth
. We need common standards to be able to compare our students’ performance to that of students in other states.
Fact.
If we want to do that, we already can. In the elementary/middle school years we have the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test; in high school we have the SAT and ACT.
Myth.
We need common standards to help students who move from state to state.
Fact.
The percentage of students who fit that description is vanishingly small (much less than 2%); most families move, if at all, within states, not to other states. It is nonsensical to bind our entire education system in a straightjacket to benefit such a small number of students.
About Us (TAE)
Truth in American Education (TAE) is a national, non-partisan group of concerned parents and citizens. We view educational issues from different perspectives; however, we are in agreement, that the promotion and implementation of elements of the Race to the Top (RTTT) policies are misguided and harmful. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS), CCSS assessments, and state longitudinal data systems development along with associated privacy issues are being implemented nationwide with insufficient research-based evidence and insufficient public examination and discourse.
TAE Advocates formed to share information, network with other individuals and groups with similar concerns, identify initiatives that are unnecessarily disruptive, experimental, and without fact-based support, and develop positions related to these issues in the educational interest of our school children The primary focus of TAE efforts is to ensure students succeed by receiving the full benefit of a quality educational experience based on their individual and developmental needs.
Four individuals formed TAE in early 2011 as an information network. American Principles Project pays for TAE web hosting and domain renewal. Annually the web hosting costs are approximately $100 and the domain renewal is $14.95. Other than this, TAE accepts no funds and has no funding source.
TAE is a true grassroots network. It is not a foundation, a non-profit, or an organization. TAE has no officers, no employees, no staff, no offices, and no expenses (other than web hosting and domain costs). TAE has no funds, no budget, no bank account, and no system in place to handle funds. TAE freely provides and shares available information within our extended network and to the public.
Truth in American Education
Truth in American Education (TAE) shines a beacon of light directly on the government’s behind-the-scenes efforts to drastically alter American education. As taxpayers, parents and concerned citizens, we believe that proper respect for the American people requires that major educational changes be subject to an open and public discussion prior to approval and implementation, not the other way around.
In particular, TAE focuses on the interrelated system of national standards, national curriculum and national testing connected to Washington’s Race to the Top (RTTT) program, although both the RTTT program and the proposed reauthorization of the original Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965, whose most recent reauthorization appeared as the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001, also presented historic changes in public education. The top-down mandates and billions of dollars spent according to the NCLB Act did little to benefit improved education results for all students.
Americans rightly have voiced these concerns that we address:
- Operating outside of the system of checks and balances that Americans rely on is dangerous to our freedoms. They are an affront to parents’ rights, the 10th Amendment and our tradition of local control over education.
- The mixing of public, corporate and foundation money without proper accountability is troublesome, as taxpayers contribute a significant portion of education funding.
- A one-size-fits-all set of national standards, curriculum and testing controlled by a few will affect us all.
- Impacts to public school, private school and home school education will be felt, as mandates increase and curriculum choices will diminish.
- Students are not widgets and require individualized learning. More top-down control is not in the best interests of educating individual students.
Truth in American Education provides information to parents, taxpayers, school board members, educators and legislators who are concerned about these issues. At the heart of it, the disposition of these issues will determine whether the federal government and elite, special interest groups have the right to form the hearts and minds of children and whether we will reject, or affirm, the concepts laid down by our founding principles.
Current information about the Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI), CCSSI-related assessments, RTTT, privacy issues, state longitudinal data systems (SLDS), and the ESEA is provided for individuals and organizations to understand and to take action on behalf of our students.
The CCSSI is a major connecting thread tying the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), CCSS assessments, RTTT, SLDS, and ESEA together. The assessments developed by two non-public entities, the Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) and the SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC), will assess the CCSS. PARCC and SBAC are funded with RTTT grant funds. RTTT criteria called for states to adopt common standards and implement longitudinal data systems. Student assessment data will be included in the state longitudinal data systems (SLDS). The reauthorization of ESEA/NCLB, A Blueprint for Reform, promotes the adoption of common standards and will require SLDS.
The four-minute video above (second one, in the middle) produced by the Heritage Foundation does an excellent job of highlighting loss of local control and other issues related to adoption of the CCSS.