The Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts Instruction in Grades 6-12

This is my second quarter in my practicum at Shadle Park High School, and my third quarter working with Common Core State Standards. I am no stranger when it comes to incorporating CCSS into my lessons, but it can be challenging still not solely to focus on teaching to the standards. This chapter hit on a lot of the problems I have working with CCSS as well as a lot of the problems I have seen and experienced in schools. I think the biggest thing this article hit on that I enjoyed reading about was the concept of "standardizing" classrooms. A lot of schools that I have heard about or experienced can be found to standardize all of their classrooms, treating every student as though they are the same. But, as stated in this chapter;

"the needs, abilities, knowledge base, and interests of teachers and student vary from school to school, classroom to classroom, and even within every classroom---they cannot be standardized" (p. 8).

Too many schools and teachers believe that every student is the same, and learns the same. The problem is that this is not the case, and commonly CCSS implies that it is. I feel that we, as educators, should work towards breaking away from that misconception and redefine CCSS. CCSS are extremely helpful in the classroom; they give teachers something to work towards, a ground level to start at.  I also enjoyed how this article touched on homogenization of instruction because that is a real problem I see in the classroom I work in currently. Homogenization is where the teacher teaches the content the same way for every class and doesn't differentiate instruction. Differentiated instruction is a tremendous tool that should be used in every classroom; no classroom is precisely the same. Sometimes CCSS does lead to this idea that we just have to teach to the standard and teach to the test, not teach to allow learning or growth.

I did enjoy the part of this chapter that talked about us, as educators, being a primary asset for motivating our students; "If your students perceive you as knowledgeable and excited about learning, then they may be more likely to be excited. CCSS can be paired with a teachers passion for teaching and help people grow. I think this is a common thing that is missed when it comes to using CCSS. CCSS shouldn't be seen as a chore to use; it should be regarded as a tool to help direct and grow a teachers passion. CCSS are an underutilized resource when it comes to helping teachers teach. Besides, to quote Barbosa from Pirates of the Carribean "The Code (CCSS) is more like guidelines, really."