How Do Schools Help Children Develop Critical Thinking Skills And Move On From Concrete

Over the course of the last six weeks, I have come to realize that critical thinking is an important asset as I continue my journey in life. I have found this course to be both challenging and rewarding. Most importantly, I find myself viewing problems and conversations in a completely different light. While I would not consider myself an expert at critical thinking, I would assess myself in as a Beginner Thinker. Paul and Elder point out in the beginning thinker stage an individual actively begins to take command of their thinking process across multiple facets of their life (Paul and Elder, 2012). Furthermore, we recognize that there are problems in the way we think and begin to consciously attempt to better understand we can improve our thinking.

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) was first implemented in 2010, nine years after I graduated from high school. Although I wasn’t personally affected by the new academic standards, it has a direct impact on the current and future generation of leaders, innovators, and world changers including my future children. The initial purpose of the Common Core Standards is to set high-quality learning goals designed to prepare students to be college and career ready. Given the current controversies surrounding CCSS, studies have shown that although the intent was to benefit students in the long-run it may actually be hindering their mathematical and reading skills. To further explore the arguments behind the Common Core initiative, I will

The Common Core Standards were developed in order to create a clear and consistent message of what students are expected to learn and know at the end of each grade level so educators and parents will know what they need to do in order to help them prepare to be career and/or college ready.

It is important to have a successful education, but common core will not only affect the schools it will also affect how students learn. According to Applebee, “From my perspective, the CCSS offers a strong and well-intentioned vision of the knowledge and skills needed by a college-and career-ready high school graduate.” (Applebee, 2013, pg. 25-33). With the world constantly changing in order to be successful is to have the fundamental structure built up for the individual. A successful person is usually successful because of the knowledge they have gathered. However, CCSS (Common Core State Standards) focuses on the main parts of education, reading, writing, and mathematics. Teaching common core is not simple to children or teenagers. Often each individual has a different way of learning. With common core, every individual is paced at the same

The educational system in the United States was originally developed using concepts from around the world, created using ingenuitive ideas from countries such as China, Japan, and Korea. However, as the United States quickly moved into position as the leading country for state-directed educational standards, America looked less and less to the systems of other nations and more into how we could improve what was locally and currently being applied in education. Consequently, an improved type of education instruction was officially launched in 2010. These new state standards, practically titled Common Core, were declared to focus on developing a child’s skills in reasoning, problem solving, communication, and competition (Conrad, et al. 52). While the standards are professed to be an extremely practical and beneficial method of teaching today, there are issues which have recently surfaced and raised some concerns. The Common Core State Standards are emerging as the subjects of a provocative controversy in society today as they prompt discussion on global economic efficiency, nationwide academic standards, and the ultimate well-being of school-age children.

The Common Core has been developed as a nationwide measurement for student progress. Officially launched in 2009 as a federal funding bill, the standards identify skills that every student residing in the United States should master in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics from kindergarten through 12th grade (Gewertz, 2015). The Common Core itself is not a curriculum, however, it identifies rigorous objectives that must be met by a school’s curriculum. The purpose is to initiate a deeper focus on developmental learning by using interdisciplinary instruction. This redefines the way that students learn because their progress is no longer assessed on the outcome of their performance, but by the process that has allowed them to reach the

Adopted by forty-two out states in 2010, the Common Core State Standard Initiative strives to provide an educational structure which details what English language arts and mathematics should be taught from kindergarten through twelfth grade. The initiative is the federal government’s attempt to ensure all students who graduate from high school are adequately prepared to enter a two or four year college or the workforce. Despite their intentions, the Common Core has caused much controversy in the education community. The thought behind Common Core is very valid and has the potential to help students, however changes must be made to unrealistic standards and wordy statements. Common Core must first be rewritten so that the language is clear and can be easily understood by the general public. Next ask experts on childhood development and elementary school teachers to review the standards and rewrite standards they see as unneeded or irrelevant as well as unrealistic.

What is Common Core? According to the Common Core organization website, the Common Core is a set of high-quality standards in Math and English. The goals laid in place by the Common Core govern what information a student should know, and what skills they should be able to perform at the end of each grade. With no regard to student background, or where they came from, the standards were constructed to ensure that all students enter the real-world with proper knowledge and skills in which are essential to succeed. In 2009, state school chiefs and governors that recognized the value and need for collaborated and coinciding goals across the nation coordinated a state-led effort to create the Common Core State Standards.

The common core standards were made to ensure that all students were ready for college and their career at the end of high school. The organizations that wrote the common core standards were the national governors association and council of chief state school officials. The common core lets all school districts study the same thing at the same time, which enables the students that move from different sate allowing that students not to be left behind. The standards includes research, evidence based, aligned with college and work expectations, rigorous and internationally benchmarked. The standards were made so students were required knowing mostly English language arts and mathematics at the end of each grade, but the standards sets requirements for literacy in history, social studies, science and technical subjects. They thought if students needed to learn how to read, write, speak and listen they should know multiple subject to be ready for college. According to the common core standards students going to the next grade level must meet the specific grade standard.

Common Core State Standards is being heard throughout the education world. Many cringe when the words are spoken and many fight to support what the words stand for. Common Core was introduced in 2009 by state leaders. Common Core State Standards were developed to prepare children for the business world or the reality after grade school. “The Common Core is a set of high-quality academic standards in mathematics and English language arts/literacy, also known as ELA” (About the Standards, n.d.). The goals for the standards outline what students should know before leaving his or her current grade level. “The standards were created to ensure that all students graduate from high school with the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in college, career, and life, regardless of where they live” (About the Standards, n.d.). This is an ambitious goal, but with much support can be accomplished. According to Common Core State Standards Initiative (n.d.) The Common Core has been adopted by forty-two states already and is accompanied by District of Columbia and Department of Defense Education Activity. Common Core was developed to improve the academics in society’s schools. Academics in the past years have not been successful and the United States has fallen behind international education. “One root cause has been an uneven patchwork of academic standards that vary from state to state and do not agree on what students should know and be able to do at each

Because Common Core was built from a diverse group of teachers, parents, and administrators they understand every aspect of what actually happens in a school and a classroom, these groups of experts designed Common Core with a clear goal in mind. No child will have to suffer because he or she comes from a poor family. No child will have to suffer because he or she moves schools a lot. No child will have to graduate high school and worry about not being prepared.

For starters, Common Core is defined as an academic outline that specializes in Math and the English Language that every student should know before moving on to higher grades. Common Core has various downsides. In order for states to recieve funding from the government they must adhere to the system guidlines. A brief note on Education and the government: education is a state right and not a federal right. Education has no right to be regulated by the government; in fact, it underminds the Tenth Amendment. The Tenth Amendment states that any power not delegated by the Constitution is delegated to the states or to the people.

In the last six years a new standards system has been created for high school students in order to help them prepare for college classes; this system is the Common Core State Standards Initiative. The Common Core system, developed in 2009, addresses both mathematics and English language arts. It creates a system of standards that map out skills and abilities from grades K-12 that need to be focused upon in order for students to be successful in the future.

Critical thinking is a vital task that must be done in our everyday lives. In “Becoming a Critic Of Your Thinking” found at criticalthinking.org, Dr. Linda Elder and Dr. Richard Paul explain critical thinking as “the disciplined art of ensuring that you use the best thinking you are capable of in any set of circumstances”. Even tough there are many different types of methods to achieve a better quality of critical thinking, Dr. Elder and Dr. Paul discuss four specific ones in the article. All strategies, however, force you to put yourself in an uncomfortable and difficult position to develop a better quality of thinking.

According to Supon, one of the fundamental purposes of teaching critical thinking is to enhance the abilities of students to become critical thinkers. Corporate leaders, educational researchers, employers, and parents have continually pushed teachers to assist their students in the development of critical thinking ability. Critical thinking is a skill that ?involved not only knowledge of content by also concept formation and analysis, reasoning and drawing conclusions, recognizing and avoiding contradiction, and other essential cognitive activities? (Supon, 1998).