State Superintendent of Edu. Talks Benefits of Common Core

Wednesday, Dr. Carey Wright, State Superintendent of Education’s, main message was about the benefits of Common Core.

Leslie Mullinix is a first grade teacher at Gaston Point Elementary School in Gulfport. She is the district Common Core Captain and has been using Common Core teaching standards in her classroom for four years. Mullinix says, “Honestly, I love it as a parent and as an educator in the classroom. It has enabled me to slow down.”

Common Core standards require teachers to dive deeper into each subject so that students can actually grasp what they’re being taught. Mullinix also says, “They go back and justify how did they get to their answer and when they finish this, they write about it. If they can do all those steps and write about it, they own that objective. They own that learning experience.”

State educators believe this is the direction Mississippi desperately needs to be going in given our poor academic performance. Dr. Wright says, “I think the rigor of the standards is going to be the impetus to provide that kind of challenge that our children need. We’ve been implementing the Mississippi standards for a number of years. We’ve had outside evaluators come in and tell us how poor they are.”

Many people are still skeptical about Common Core and what it entails, but teachers are encouraging parents to come into the classroom and check it out first hand. Mullinix also says, “I think change is uncomfortable for most people. Change is uncomfortable for me, but I have found that when I invite the parents in to come and get involved in our activities and just see what we’re doing on a daily basis, that they get very excited about what their children are doing now.”

Mullinix tells News 25 she believes that although Common Core is more challenging, it’s in the best interest of students. Mullinix closes, “The questions are harder, but they learn how to think it through versus just regurgitating something out.”

Gulfport test scores will be released in October. The Gulfport School District is part of the Excellence for All Pilot Program, which required an earlier switch to Common Core.