California Math Teacher: Common Core Adds Up

Recent events in the long pursuit of common ground with policymakers around support for Common Core has left me scratching my head and searching for answers. The reality is that too many state legislatures have disregarded over four years of impressive teaching and learning in our nation's schools.

Much has been written and debated on the state-led shift toward more rigorous, consistent K-12 education standards commonly known as Common Core. At the same time, that intense focus on the standards has obscured an equally important shift – the adoption of instructional resources aligned to the new standards.

The Common Core State Standards, along with advances in technology, have opened up a new era in teacher collaboration over the past few years. Reaching across district and state boundaries, teachers are not only sharing useful resources and strategies, but also co-designing lessons and writing curricula.