NextGen Standards: A Pre-K Teacher's Perspective

Whether we know it or not, we are all stakeholders in our local public schools and helping prepare children to be productive in life. Strong academic standards that push students to strive for their highest potential benefits our entire community. As a prekindergarten teacher, my role is to provide my students with a strong foundation for future learning and I expect standards that respect early childhood development.

That’s why the New York State Education Department’s process to revise the learning standards from pre-K through 12th grade is so important to me. High standards can help set students on the path to success while clear expectations help educators level the playing field.

Unfortunately, when I read the first draft of the standards back in September, I felt let down. What I expect for pre-K reflects the joyful learning environment created by and for our students matched with developmentally appropriate and meaningful standards. In this first set of revised standards, neither joy nor the purposeful benchmarks were adequately represented. Instead, there were still many standards that didn’t have appropriate grade bands, lacked a realistic timeline to acquire and cultivate skills or were simply out of the range of appropriate pre-K behaviors.

Now, after reading the revised draft for the pre-K standards in June, I see changes reflective of feedback, including my own, as not only received but incorporated into the process to create more meaningful and attainable standards that align more appropriately with child development.

The lack of opportunity for teachers, parents and community members to provide meaningful feedback before new standards and assessments were initially implemented in 2011 ultimately helped fuel the backlash in certain areas against Common Core. I believe the state education department has positively addressed those concerns by creating ample opportunities for educators, parents and communities to provide feedback. Furthermore, the revised standards demonstrate that that feedback has been taken seriously, an action that makes me feel both respected and heard.

The timeline released by the department to implement these changes is likewise practical and deliberate. It has allowed for three full academic years of professional development for teachers to understand the changes to the standards and make necessary adjustments in their curriculums before the standards are fully implemented in the fall of 2020. I'd argue that even the most change adverse should find this reasonable. 

I would like to urge the New York State Board of Regents to vote yes on this final draft of the standards at its upcoming meeting in July. The two-year process to revise the standards, solicit public comment, revise again, solicit public comment again and present a final draft has been necessary and invaluable, but should now conclude as we move forward. The State should turn its focus to ensuring that all of us in the classroom and in our school communities are supported in implementing the standards so every child has a chance to thrive.

Sara Garro is a pre-K teacher at PS 11 William T Harris Elementary School in Manhattan. She is a NY Educator Voice Fellow with America Achieves and a volunteer for High Achievement NY.