Common Core Ads Claim Standards Will Equalize All Children

More advertisements for the Common Core national standards debuted this week. The new videos are sponsored by the National Urban League. The black civil rights group supports the standards as a way to make public education more "equitable" for students of all races.

The first ad features children of different races running a 100-meter dash and all finishing at the same time. A narrator explains:

If your child attends public school, you should know something very interesting tends to happen when all students have equal access to a high quality education. That's why we need equitable implementation of Common Core State Standards. Putting Common Core in our schools puts all children first.

Sure, students should have equal access to public education, regardless of race. But that doesn't mean all students should be expected to behave equally, enjoy equal outcomes, or even demonstrate equal needs and preferences. A major concern with Common Core is its equitable nature. Standardization imposes a uniform way of learning on all children, even if that's not in their best interests.

In the eyes of this libertarian individualist, a race where everyone comes in first is a frightening way to illustrate what national education czars are trying to accomplish. (It reminds me of something…)

But even if forced equalization were some admirable goal, there is no good evidence that Common Core is a well-designed and cost-effective system of standards for advancing the educational interests of all students.

Watch the video below. More from Reason on the Common Core ad campaign here.