It seems state Sen. Mike Fair (R-Greenville) hasn’t given up on his mission to stop South Carolina schools from adopting common education standards in use by nearly every other state in the country.
Back in February, Sen. Fair introduced a bill that would block South Carolina from adopting Common Core education standards. The State Board of Education voted to adopt Common Core back in 2010, joining 45 other states who use the standards to prepare students for college and the workplace. But Fair is decidedly against South Carolina schools catching up with other states, and has tried to block Common Core’s implementation in any way possible.
In a committee hearing on the bill, Fair brought in a Bush Administration schools official who called Common Core “the Obamacare of education” — drawing gasps of outrage from the many teachers in the room. Another out-of-state education activist claimed that teachers are trying to brainwash students by teaching them radical subjects like “civics” and “science,” and that Common Core supporters want to create dystopian education factories where nobody can choose their own job.
Seriously. They said that. Read our original story if you don’t believe it.
The Senate quickly killed Fair’s bill after the above mentioned display of wingnuttery by its supporters, but Fair isn’t done. With the Senate debating this year’s appropriations bill over the past week, Fair again tried to insert a budget amendment that would block any state funds from being used to implement Common Core education standards in South Carolina schools.
Luckily, several Republicans joined Senate Democrats in killing Fair’s anti-education measure once again. But if the tenacity of Fair and other tea partiers is any indication, don’t be surprised if Common Core opponents launch yet another attack on education standards before it’s all over.
One wants to ask if what the opponents to the Common Core are smoking is legal…
Senator Fair is not fighting against good educational standards; he is fighting for meaningful educational standards, which Common Core Standards are not. Common Core takes away states’ liberties, removes calculus from high schools, severely limits classic literature in English classrooms, and pushes Algebra I from 8th grade to 9th grade. This is not improving education. This is not preserving state rights or national liberties. I applaud Senator Fair for his wisdom and courage.
If Senator Fair is fighting for meaningful education standards in place of Common Core ask him where is his proposal. Obviously the state of SC’s education is just like many others, in great need of change for the better. So, where is this new plan that will create quality education for the kids of SC? Let me guess, it hasn’t been created yet. It sounds like Senator Fair is giving the parents of SC the business.