Oklahoma recently took action to protect the state's children from the federal
education bureaucracy by withdrawing from Common Core. Common Core is the latest
attempt to bribe states, with money taken from the American people, into adopting
a curriculum developed by federal bureaucrats and education "experts." In exchange
for federal funds, states must change their curriculum by, for example, replacing
traditional mathematics with "reform math." Reform math turns real mathematics
on its head by focusing on "abstract thinking" instead of traditional concepts
like addition and subtraction. Schools must also replace classic works of literature
with "informational" texts, such as studies by the Federal Reserve Bank of
San Francisco. Those poor kids!
Oklahoma will likely not be the last state to explicitly ban Common Core,
as grassroots opposition to this latest federal education "reform" scheme continues
to grow. While "reform math" and the use of "informational" texts grab headlines
and fuel the outrage behind this movement, they are just symptoms of the problem,
not the cause. The devil with Common Core lies not in its details but in its
underlying principle. That principle is that that DC-based central planners
can develop a curriculum suitable for every student. The idea that government "experts" can
centrally plan a nation's educational system is just as flawed as the idea
that government can centrally plan the economy.
One major flaw in a curriculum deigned by central planners for use by all
students is that it will likely not be academically rigorous enough to meet
the needs of college-bound students. Yet at the same time, "one-size-fits-all" curriculums
like Common Core offer little to meet the needs of students interested in technical
or vocational education opportunities.
Growing dissatisfaction with Common Core and other centralized education schemes
is leading an increasing number of parents to pursue alternatives such as homeschooling.
Throughout my congressional career I was a defender of homeschooling. Now that
I am out of Congress, I have expanded my work with homeschoolers through my
Ron Paul Homeschool Curriculum. The curriculum provides students with a rigorous
education in history, math, English, foreign languages, and other subjects.
While the curriculum is designed to prepare students for college-level work,
students not interested pursing a traditional four-year college degree will
also benefit.
The curriculum features three tracks: natural science/math, social sciences/humanities,
and business. Students may also take courses in personal finance and public
speaking. The curriculum avoids the ideological biases common in public schools;
for example, the government and history sections of the curriculum emphasize
Austrian economics, libertarian political theory, and the history of liberty.
Students can use the student discussion forums to interact with, learn from,
and teach their peers.
One unique feature of the curriculum is that it gives students the opportunity
to start their own Internet-based businesses.
The curriculum is free for students from kindergarten through fifth grade.
Families above the fifth grade pay $250 a year, plus $50 per course. However,
for the next three months, the Ron Paul Home School Curriculum is offering
-- for non-members only -- an online summer school refresher program for students
above the fifth grade. For just $25 students can access the curriculum for
three months. This is an excellent opportunity for parents to see if my curriculum
meets their child's needs.
If you are a parent dissatisfied with existing education options, I hope you
will take advantage of the Ron Paul Curriculum's summer refresher program and
consider opting-out of Common Core and opting-in to the Ron Paul Curriculum.
For information on my summer refresher program please see here. For
information on the curriculum please see here.
