Common Core speaker at Millburn's Bauer Center

A critic of the Common Core standards will speak at the Bauer Community Center in Taylor Park Friday, Sept. 26, at 7:30 p.m.

Dr. Duke Pesta, a professor of English at the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, is the Academic Director of FreedomProject Education and his lecture tomorrow night is being sponsored by Preserve Our Schools, a grass roots organization started by resident Doug Cundey.

Common Core standards have been adopted by more than 40 states. According to Millburn school administrators, Common Core was adopted in 2010 after being created by the National Governors Association and Council of Chief State School Officers. New Jersey has adopted Common Core language arts and math standards and all K-through-12 curriculum in Millburn public schools has been aligned to Common Core since last year.

School officials say the new standards will not lower standards already in place in Millburn, but will better prepare students for college.

Critics of the standards claim the program will result in expensive and time-consuming testing. They also claim the study of language arts and history are being steered away from classic literature, traditional texts and subjects to government-approved materials. In speeches to the Board of Education and the Township Committee, Cundey has claimed the program is "communism."