Local principal pulls child out of school due to Common Core
There's a new facet to the debate over common core. Some parents are keeping their kids out of public school, so they won't be subjected to the state-mandated education reforms. Time Warner Cable News Reporter Madeleine Rivera had a chance to speak to not only a parent, but an educator who is taking a stand.
COLUMBIA COUNTY, N.Y. -- Six-year-old John Farley frolics through the yard, a bundle of energy. But, he's not always so bouncy.
"When we ask him, how was your day? Boring. We say, what's wrong with it? I don't like it. I don't want to go to school," said Tim Farley, his father.
It sounds like a typical complaint for kids. But, his father, says the roots of John's problems go much deeper, tracing to the classroom and the newly-instituted Common Core.
"As an educator, it breaks my heart. My wife is a former educator, it breaks her heart," he said.
Farley says he constantly sees students struggle over the Common Core. He's a principal at a local school.
"Sometimes, it takes you several minutes just to figure out what the question is asking. And, they force you into a cookie cutter approach of solving a problem," he said.
In order for John to avoid these frustrations, Farley and his wife have chosen to pull John out of Ichabod Crane, where he's currently a kindergartner. Next year, John will be homeschooled.
"I feel bad because I am the public school principal. I'm taking one of my children out of the public school system because the system itself failed," said Farley.
The State's budget, passed earlier this week, does include some changes to the implementation of the Common Core. The scores won't be immediately recorded on student transcripts and won't be used to determine student placement. But, as students across the state finished another wave of Common Core tests this week, Farley says the changes aren't good enough.
"If a child takes the test and they don't reach a certain benchmark, they'll get academic intervention services. That law hasn't changed," he said.
As the debate continues over the future of education and common core, John won't be a part of it, at least for now.
"I feel conflicted. But, my job as a father, as a parent, is to protect my children, first and foremost," said Farley.
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