In the latest series of letters between two award-winning educators from opposite ends of both the East Coast and the Common Core debate, supporter and 2015 National Principal of the Year Jayne Ellspermann insists that if parents knew more about the Common Core, they would like it.

Jayne Ellspermann is an educator in Florida and has posted her letters to Carol Burris, a New York educator who vehemently proposes the Common Core standards on TheHechingerReport.com

In her letter, Ellspermann describes a successful and purposeful end to a week of standardized testing. "We have not had one student opt out. Teachers are confident in our students’ performance and students feel their daily instruction has prepared them well," she said.

Indeed, what Ellspermann describes sounds much different than what's going on in New York, where each day brings reports of higher suspected numbers of student opt-outs from being tested at all in firm protest.

Ellspermann goes on to speculate why the dramatic difference in opinion between states that are not that far away and are operating under the same standards.

"We have worked hard to make sure our community understands the Florida standards by providing tools and training for our teachers, students, and parents," she said.

She speaks of Parent Math Nights held throughout the state, "where students show their parents how they are learning math" and an app developed by the Florida Association of School Administrators that "shares information about the Florida standards through videos, power points, note sheets, and other resources."

In other words, according to Ellspermann, Florida goes above and beyond to ensure that parents are given the same materials as teachers in order to understand Common Core expectations. Ellspermann believes the issue is not with the standards, but with the communication of these standards across everyone who is involved.

"We need to ensure that all students are ready for college and a career. I support the Common Core because it challenges our students to think," she said.

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Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

04/27/2015