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Cobb School Board Says “Yes” to Common Core Math Materials

July 25th, 2013

The Cobb County school board voted 4-3 Wednesday to adopt math materials aligned to the Common Core education standards. The decision comes just as school is about to start.

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In April, the school board considered spending $7.5 million for textbooks and digital resources. The board decided Wednesday to spend less than $3 million on mostly digital materials for grades K-12. Board chair Randy Scamihorn voted against the April adoption, but voted in favor of the new plan.

“It’s about Cobb County’s finite resources and the need for math teachers to need those resources,” he said. “And, certainly, $2.9 million is certainly a lot more less than $7.5 and we can still get the job done.”

The board has been reluctant to adopt materials aligned to Common Core. Some state GOP lawmakers have vowed to repeal the standards next year. Scamihorn said he didn’t want to invest in materials that could become obsolete.

Cobb County teachers go back to work next week. Students arrive the week after. Cobb Association of Educators president Connie Jackson said that’s why the board needed to decide.

“To say that it’s about Common Core really isn’t the truth,” Jackson said. “It’s about getting something in the hands of our teachers, in the hands of our students so they can learn math in Kindergarten through 12th grade.”

Beth Farokhi taught in Cobb County where she still lives. She urged the board to adopt the materials, and then she said she’d been frustrated by the lack of action so far.

“This is something that impacts from Kindergarten all the way through 12th grade, every single student is impacted,” she said. “And every single teacher that touches on mathematics it impacts.”

But other Cobb residents, like Joyce Shumaker, said the board needed to give it some more time.

“We don’t need to do this like the Obamacare’s been doing things—wrong,” she told the board. “The same scenario has happened earlier and we don’t need this. We recommend you wait until your regular August meeting to take up a vote.”

School officials estimate teachers will have the digital math materials when school starts. The textbooks, they say, will likely arrive in September.