In Massachusetts we have, or is it had, the Mass Curriculum Frameworks and Standards.  Now we are transitioning to the Common Core. These standards, as I understand the term, are to provide the framework, backbone by which we build our curriculum.

A list of standards is not the same as a curriculum. I think we tend to confuse standards (minimum to do list) and curriculum (expanded, creative how to guide). We tend to focus on the to do list and then test* to see how successfully we completed the list. We do not focus on creative teaching, or instruction; which can incorporate the other educational goals and learning needs of our students.

Because these standards are handed down at state or federal levels, as are the corresponding assessments, there is little variation or interpretation based on local conditions and needs. For example I live on cape cod where we should be studying marshes, oceans and marine life but few schools here do, except a high school class or two. The standards may be vague enough that we could include that environment and ecosystem in our studies. But more precisely the tests that evaluate the standards have a focus on terrestrial environments so we tend to teach about forests and woodlands.

We know there is more to teaching then what is on the test. We want to be creative out of the box teachers. We want our students be out of the box thinkers.  We want a deep, rich, engaging, thought-provoking curriculum that excites us as teachers and reaches ALL of our students. But when it comes to accountability we rely on numbers – we are in an age of data driven decision making after all. Therefore whether we are testing students or evaluating teachers we tend to fall back on the easy comfort of checking off a to do list. We want objective numbers. We test what we can measure therefore we teach (evaluate) what we can test.  How do we measure all those other factors that are a part of teaching and learning? How do we turn our attention all the creative how tos and out of the box teaching and learning that does not fit in our normal measurement systems?

The article that started me down this road of thought, National Standards Won’t Help, Won’t Work was shared by Mark Dunk

* What will happen to the current state of testing is anybody’s guess. Will just trade one version of the MCAS for another? How will it work with the NCLB waivers and new teacher evaluation scenarios?  As we transition from one set of standards we are also transitioning to new methods and measures of accountability.