Today’s USA Today editorial page says that Core Knowledge is good for what ails our schools.
Referring to test-driven reading strategy instruction as “about as useful as teaching a child how to throw a football without giving him an understanding of the game,” the editorial cites New Holland Core Knowledge Academy in Gainesville, Georgia as a heavily minority and low-income school where Core Knowledge is making a difference. “Just before Christmas, Arlena Greene’s fifth-grade students were studying animal and plant cells in science,” the paper notes. “In social studies, they were studying World War I. Far from hurting the school’s performance on tests, the curriculum appears to be paying off, especially for those still learning English. Last year, 87% of the students at the academy met or exceeded state standards in math and English.”
