Refuting Dr. Sandra Stotsky and those like her
The only true failure in the development and design of Common Core was the estimation of opposition, and the appreciation of a politician's lack of conscience and total disregard for loyalty. Because of this failure of estimation -- the preparation for opposition was wholly entrusted to a)the writing of a FAQ, and then b) adding to that a Myths and Facts page on the Common Core website. The creators unwisely believed that if people had questions about Common Core, they would go to the web site and discover the answers for themselves. This is laughable, and wholly naive of course.
People rarely do anything to educate themselves. This is a well known fact in marketing and it is a crucial cornerstone in propaganda.
For propaganda to be fully effective, it must be believed by those who hear it - or at least not fully discounted, and it must be made at a time where discovery of the information which could discredit the propagandic statements is either not available, or the listeners are deterred from investigation.
Dr. Sandra Stotsky, being a professional, will of course follow all of the requited points of effective propaganda to the letter. You can see her in YouTube videos, and read her in news venues, hear her at college panels, and on various "investigative" committees.
Dr. Sandra Stotsky has a list of Common Core failings which all make logical sense -- meaning that while you are listening you do not need to reference a dictionary, nor do you need to puzzle over any of the points in order to agree that they sound like important areas of concern... whether you know anything about the topic or not.
Eighty percent (80%) of the points she will present to you are false, and sixty percent of those(60%) are refuted by either the FAQ page, or the MYTHS and FACTS page on the Common Core website. One of her favorite points to bring up, and it is on just about every presentation she does is that ...
Common Core is not Internationally Benchmarked
Dr. Sandra Stotsky will tell you that Common Core has not been properly tested, that it is fully experimental and was never benchmarked by the International Community.This claim is well constructed and she delivers it professionally.
Points to note: First, it sounds like something a professional in the education field would bring up. It is commonly known that these "research types" are always bringing up points like Peer Review, as if Peer Review was a verse in the Bible. Since educational standards are Nation Wide, then it also makes sense that your Peers would be other nations. You then easily jump to the proximity conclusion then that something International is required here.
So, you accept that, and it is highly unlikely that you feel the need to consult Google in order to find out if such things as International Benchmarks even exist.
In this case the conclusion is correct and other countries are consulted many times during the creation of educational standards and even the development of curriculum. Notes are compared, data is shared on effectiveness, and problematic results, and several other areas. In fact the practice is so prevalent and deemed fervently required for any project of serious intent, we wonder why Dr. Sandra Stotsky would bring it up. -- We'll get to that in the following article.
The International Benchmarks of Common Core
Here is a list of all of the countries involved with Benchmarking Common Core, published in August of 2012. (Click the list to go to the full Report (over 50 pages). |
| Be sure to Read the full Report |
Stotsky is a professional (mis)Information® propagator. You will discover that over 80% of her published claims regarding Common Core are false, or misleading. A list of her current activities can be found on this web page. Which can also be referred to when wondering who in America has been dupted recently regarding the attributes and legitimacy of Common Core.
Items of Note: On the page referenced above:
- Claims that Stotsky is the sole creator of the "...country’s strongest sets of academic standards for K-12 students" No record or publication of this elusive and inordinately devine academic standard for K-12 students can be found or referred to by any available reference.
- Claims that Stotsky developed the "...strongest academic standards and licensure tests for prospective teachers" While Stotsky did serve as Senior Associate Commissioner in the Massachusetts Department of Education from 1999-2003, there is no mention of her being involved with the project, nor making any contributions of note. *I do have an email request to the dept requesting clarity in this matter and will update when I receive a response, but since there is no citation on the Wikipedia page either, don't hold your breath
- Claims that Stotsky "currently serves on several committees for the International Dyslexia Association". The IDA has a Sandy Stotsky listed in the Sub Committee are (Under the Adhoc Committees) in the Professional Development list. This is an interesting notation -- because one of the publications on the IDA website is a listing of the Common Core ELA criteria which she apparently fully endorses.
Suffice it to say that Stotsky is a woman of many depths, and shallows. She has repeatedly attempted to get a page on Wikipedia, but is having difficulty since Wikipedia demands citable sources. Her current attempt is now in the process of being deleted as well.
Stotsky has strong ties with and often does PR work for:
- Thomas B Fordham Foundation
- The Heartland Institution
- Advises and defends the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills
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