Common Core Standards

abcd1234 said:
When IUSD is the only district using this exam as the end-all be-all as the evaluation for a kid's ability to take Algebra or 8th grade math as a 7th grader, then I disagree.  My child is at a disadvantage to kids at Newport-Mesa, Tustin, etc school districts. 

I don't think kids can be taking Calc BC if they don't pass this test.
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Your kid will be fine...they will make it into college even if they don't take Calculus BC.
 
Irvinecommuter- it's not about the ability to make it into college-  it's about the ability to have the option to take it in high school, for which I know my child would be fully capable.
 
The entire math curriculum is being flipped upside down by CCSS anyway. Local districts will be rewriting their math classes at the HS level to align with the more thought provoking standards. Don't worry about an entrance test until you know what they are trying to enter into. I've always seen a benefit to a HS student taking a free community college course for guaranteed credit as opposed to potential credit with AP or IB.
 
My kid also did not pass this test.  He is a 6th grader who took per algebra class this year with 7th graders.  He missed probability section because he was unfamiliar with a specific "box and whiskers" method that was taught in 6th grade.  He was supposed to go to Algebra class next year but instead he would have to go to 7th and 8th grade common core pre-pre-algebra classes in order to get to it unless he passes the test this summer.  Frustrating. 
In our school 4 kids passed out of 130 kids.
 
instead of complaining about your kids failing you should look at the reasons for the failure. is there anything you as parents are doing wrong? are you doing after school tutoring? weekend tutoring? if 4 kids passed, clearly the test is passable. perhaps a little less complaining and a little more parenting would get the job done.  you spent all this money for an overpriced home in irvine to send your kids to the best schools so your kids will be well prepared and they fail the test?  perhaps you should sell your home and move to santa ana.
 
I heard his kid would be ranked #1 there and get into harvard!  The IVC of the east coast.
 
My kids have a few years before they will start school but I find it a bit alarming when I read things like only 4 out of 130 kids passed. Is the problem the Common Core Math standards or is the problem with how it is taught? In this example, does the Common Core standard specify that a "box and whiskers" methods needs to be used? Or is it an implementation that IUSD or the teacher came up with?

Watching some of the videos in this thread reminds me of this essay comparing how fractions are taught in California versus Singapore (I do not know when this was written):http://math.berkeley.edu/~giventh/TDS/m5.pdf

 
Change always requires adjustment.

From what I understand, they are trying to focus on problem solving rather than memorization. That's also why I believe the tests are moving from multiple choice to answering the questions via "show your work".

I actually like the direction it's going, it helps your kids with logic rather than reflex.

Eventually, this number will flip to 4 out 130 did not pass and it will all be a distant memory.

I'd rather my kids try, fail, try, fail, try, succeed... than try, succeed and not learn anything... to make some omelettes, you need to break some eggs.

Disclaimer: Maybe in the future I will be complaining about the same thing because my kids are not currently old enough to take this boogie man math test.

 
irvinehomeowner said:
From what I understand, they are trying to focus on problem solving rather than memorization. That's also why I believe the tests are moving from multiple choice to answering the questions via "show your work".
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great! that's why 3x4 equals 11 is ok as long as you show your work...
when something deviates from common sense, you know it is just BS.
when people come up with some stupid idea, they always make it sound rosy.

math is math, it's not rocket science. there are proven methods from all over the world. american is already very behind in math we don't need some genius/idiot to invent the new wheel and embarrass us all. if you really want to impress the world, do a pilot program instead dragging everyone into this mess.
 
qwerty said:
instead of complaining about your kids failing you should look at the reasons for the failure.
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unfortunately, there is no way to find out why they fail because they never give your test back. and they never show you what's the expected answer or what's the secret steps to show. they never show you how are those steps graded. even most of the teachers are not familiar with this common core procedure.
and they are still deciding what text book to use for the coming 7th & 8th grader.
all they show you is hundreds of pages of curriculums.
 
sentosa said:
irvinehomeowner said:
From what I understand, they are trying to focus on problem solving rather than memorization. That's also why I believe the tests are moving from multiple choice to answering the questions via "show your work".
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great! that's why 3x4 equals 11 is ok as long as you show your work...
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Not really, it's still wrong, and because they show their work, you can find out why. But "show your work" isn't for a simple multiplication question, math facts still need to be memorized/understood. "Show your work" is for answering word problems or more complex math questions, preparing you for high school where you needed proofs and theorems.
when something deviates from common sense, you know it is just BS.
when people come up with some stupid idea, they always make it sound rosy.
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Conversely, when people come across something new, they tend to shoot it down before giving it a chance.
math is math, it's not rocket science. there are proven methods from all over the world. american is already very behind in math we don't need some genius/idiot to invent the new wheel and embarrass us all. if you really want to impress the world, do a pilot program instead dragging everyone into this mess.
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But that's the point, they are trying to use "proven methods from all over the world" to improve math education in the US. They are not reinventing the wheel, they are adopting the models from the countries that outperform the US in math.

From the site that zovall posted above:
For more than a decade, research studies of mathematics education in high-performing countries have concluded that mathematics education in the United States must become substantially more focused and coherent in order to improve mathematics achievement in this country. To deliver on this promise, the mathematics standards are designed to address the problem of a curriculum that is ?a mile wide and an inch deep.?

These new standards build on the best of high-quality math standards from states across the country. They also draw on the most important international models for mathematical practice, as well as research and input from numerous sources, including state departments of education, scholars, assessment developers, professional organizations, educators, parents and students, and members of the public.
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Why do people view an attempt to improve our system as a bad thing? Wasn't this the same issue people were having when we moved to a standards based system in the 80s?

Evolution is good and often necessary.
 
irvinehomeowner said:
These new standards build on the best of high-quality math standards from states across the country. They also draw on the most important international models for mathematical practice, as well as research and input from numerous sources, including state departments of education, scholars, assessment developers, professional organizations, educators, parents and students, and members of the public.
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really ? we all come from very strong asian math background. and when we look at they are trying to teach in common core, we are just shocked.

just because they say they are "build on the best of high-quality math standards" doesn't mean they really are.

there is no proven success record of this CC. there is only many failed examples from many states that have adopted it.

data talks, not fancy words.
 
WasToldToChangeMyName said:
I'm confused. So are they marking it incorrect if the correct answer was given but the work to get to the answer is wrong?  Also, if they're not giving you any info back regarding the test, then how does irvineres know that his kid failed the probability section bc of the box/whisker method?
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i think if you don't show your work their way, you will get point reduction. and when you need to grade over all the steps, we need people who are trained in math not just any teacher or school administrator to grade the paper.
we all know that math has so many different approaches for the same problem. and now grading becomes very subjective.

a lot of kids talked about this box/whisker after they took the test. because many of them don't know about it. the only way for parents to find out is from whatever their kids can remember from the test.
 
Again- the problem is implementation.  We had a similar issue to what IrvineRes had mentioned.  One of the 6th grade teachers in our school never had time to go over this "box and whiskers" method, so the whole classroom was at a disadvantage.  How is it fair for IUSD to put this on a test? 

Qwerty- why don't you stick to the parenting forum discussing the merits of different sippy cups.  If you had a 6th grader, and he/she were bright, maybe you'd have the same frustration many of us are having now.  The fault isn't with parenting- it is that the teachers need to teach this material if it is going to be tested on. 

Bones-  There were only 3 or 4 problems on the probability section.  If you get it wrong, you are not going to pass that section of the exam.  To pass this test, you must pass all 5 sections.
 
abcd1234 said:
Again- the problem is implementation.  We had a similar issue to what IrvineRes had mentioned.  One of the 6th grade teachers in our school never had time to go over this "box and whiskers" method, so the whole classroom was at a disadvantage.  How is it fair for IUSD to put this on a test? 

Qwerty- why don't you stick to the parenting forum discussing the merits of different sippy cups.  If you had a 6th grader, and he/she were bright, maybe you'd have the same frustration many of us are having now.  The fault isn't with parenting- it is that the teachers need to teach this material if it is going to be tested on. 
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I'm not a stuck up unrealistic parent who thinks my kid is a genius and if they fail a test something is wrong with the system. I've already mastered the world of sippy cups so nothing new for me to learn there.
 
@abcd1234:

What you are saying is also part of the problem. Common Core is also new to teachers so they may not know exactly how to present this new system to their kids.

Yes, it is unfortunate that your kids are the first to go through this but someone has to be first (and I'm sure once my kids go through this it will not be perfected yet).

But that's also maybe as parents we can help. If we understand the the Common Core system, we might be able to help where our teachers fall short. Have any of you talked to your teachers about this test, in particular this "box and whiskers" method? What has been their response?

I don't think we have any IUSD teachers (particularly math) as members on TI, that would probably help.
 
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