![\"\"](\"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/florida\/files\/2013\/04\/Knock-It-Off-300x199.jpg\" "\\"Knock")
<\/a>David Castillo Dominici \/ freedigitalphotos.net<\/p>
Supporters of the Common Core have taken an exasperated tone with critics.<\/p><\/div>\n
Florida has been leading the consortium of 45 states who are developing Common Core standards for education. In the past few weeks, objections to the new national benchmarks<\/a>\u2014and the new standardized tests that will accompany them\u2014have been getting louder.<\/p>\n Last week, students in New York sat for the state\u2019s first standardized tests tied to Common Core. The\u00a0New York Times<\/em>\u00a0was among the publications that reported on complaints<\/a>: Tearful students, not enough time to finish the exams, parents who didn\u2019t want their kids to be guinea pigs for the latest in standardized testing.<\/p>\n Even so, the editorial that ran in\u00a0The New York Times<\/em><\/a>\u00a0over the weekend summarily dismisses the parents and activists who are outraged by the Common Core:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThey shouldn\u2019t be: the tests, which measure math and English skills, are an essential part of rigorous education reforms known as Common Core that seek to improve reasoning skills and have been adopted by 45 states. \u2026 The Common Core standards were the product of a heavily researched, bipartisan effort pioneered by the National Governors Association in collaboration with the Council of Chief State School Officers.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The\u00a0Times<\/em>\u00a0editorial board points out there\u2019s since been significant agitation from the political right to put the kibosh on Common Core:<\/p>\n \u201cThe Republican National Committee has attacked the standards, arguing that they usurp state authority. Last week the Alabama Legislature took up a bill that would roll back the standards.<\/p>\n But if the country retreats from the Common Core reforms, it will be surrendering the field to competitors that have already left it behind in math and science education, which are essential to participation in the 21st-century work force.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The\u00a0Times<\/em>\u00a0isn\u2019t the only publication to push back against the pushback. In a pro-Common Core column in the\u00a0Orlando Sentinel<\/em>, Beth Kassab hones in on the irony<\/a> that the resistance comes from the right:<\/p>\n \u201cIf you buy into their paranoia, then you also have to believe that conservative stalwart Jeb Bush is out to brainwash our children with leftist ideals.<\/p>\n And you’d have to buy into the idea that the Republicans over at the Florida Chamber of Commerce, the conservatives at the Fordham Institute and even free-market champion Rick Scott are co-conspirators.\u00a0\u2026 we have officially arrived at Crazytown.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n