The Educational Tech Scam

By Jenni White

The Common Core Standards are an educational reform movement initiated by the National Governors Assocation and intended to standardize the educational curricula of the states around a "common core" of knowledge required to function in modern society. Put that way, the initiative sounds fine, but as if often the case with educational reforms, Common Core proponents have relied on bafflement and obfuscation to shut down inquiry by the paying public into the very political process of putting the initiative into action -- a process monetarily supported by private education corporations. Common Core tests (those used in Oklahoma were developed by a number of individuals and states in a consortium called PARCC; Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) are to be computer adaptive, leaving the paper and pencil tests of yesteryear behind in a cloud of perceived ineffectual dust. Due to their technologically intensive nature, concerns have been raised in a number of quarters over their costs, in no small part due to the technology necessary to administer the tests. Although no reasonable person.... (Read Full Article)