Common Core panned at Colonie public forum

PHOTOGRAPHER: Zachary Matson

Folks line up to share their views on Common Core at a Colonie listening stop on Friday.

The message was loud and clear at a Common Core public forum Friday night: The tests and evaluations tied to the contentious standards are unwanted by many parents and teachers.

With state Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia on hand, a long line of parents, teachers and school administrators voiced their largely critical views of the state’s Common Core standards.

While many of the speakers acknowledged the value of high learning standards, they panned the implementation of the state’s standards, the “politicization” of education and the stringent testing regime and teacher evaluations tied to the standards.

“We used to understand that this is not a one-size-fits-all system …” said Clarisse Banks, the mother of two students in Colonie schools. She went on to say that every day her daughter’s “creativity dies just a little.”

The “listening stop” comes as part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s task force formed to review the standards and “to improve implementation and reduce testing anxiety.”

The task force is directed to finish its review and make recommendations to the governor by the end of the year.

The only clear-throated support of the standards Friday night came from a pair of spokeswomen from statewide business groups, who argued the standards help develop a workforce with the skills necessary to fill many needed jobs. But those arguments were roundly rejected by a wave of parents and educators that dismissed the notion of using the school system to create “corporate widgets.” Many speakers also questioned the merit of allowing private businesses to develop annual assessments instead of teachers.

“Why are corporations driving the narrative?” Colonie parent Alison Bianco asked.

A library media specialist of 12 years said she was losing time with students and felt that her importance was diminishing because she wasn’t considered “core” and that her students were losing the chance to exercise their creativity.

“Common Core is killing the creativity I see in my students …” said Lisa Marinucci of Shaker Road Elementary School. “You know what kills me at the end of every year? I’m not core and that gives me the impression that I’m not important.”

Other teachers and parents said art, literature, social studies, science and physical activity were getting short shrift under the new testing system that put so much emphasis on math and English assessment scores.

Elia sat quietly throughout the hour-and-a-half long event, taking notes. She didn’t respond to any of the speakers. After the final speaker, she said she had heard “varied opinions about a number of things” and that there was still “a lot of work to do in New York.”