Haslam Leans On Teachers To Sway Public Over Common Core

Gov. Bill Haslam met with groups of educators in West, Middle and East Tennessee to talk about the benefits of Common Core as the state standards are under attack in the legislature. Credit: Blake Farmer / WPLN

Governor Bill Haslam is trying to show public opinion is on his side when it comes to Common Core, even if the legislature is turning against him.

Haslam sat down in a school library with a handpicked group of educators as cameras rolled. In the made-for-TV roundtable, he prompted teachers to say why they like new benchmarks for what kids should know at the end of each grade. Amy Gullion of Smyrna said it makes no sense to delay the related standardized test.

“There’s a big disconnect when we don’t assess what we teach,” she said.

Events were also held in West and East Tennessee.

Haslam is responding to the state House’s overwhelming vote to put off going to a new Common Core test.

Lawmakers like Rep. Mike Sparks are mostly making a political statement. The Rutherford County Republican can’t point to exactly what bothers him with the standards now used in 45 states. But he knows he hears doubts – from left-leaning teachers unions to conservative activists.

“People want states’ rights,” he said. “They want things to be developed by Tennessee for Tennesseans, and I think that’s the area that we need to look at.”

Sparks was the only legislator to attend Haslam’s school events.

While Common Core opponents say they’re responding to a public outcry, they may be listening to a vocal minority. According to an MTSU poll released last month, more than half of respondents had never heard of Common Core.

Haslam stopped short of threatening vetoes for bills attacking Common Core. But he came close.

“There are very few things that I am as committed to in this session,” he said.  “It’s historical that Tennessee is the fastest improving state in the country. I don’t want to see us turn around there.”