AFT Joins Organization Intended to Promote
Knowledge-Rich Curriculum

WASHINGTON, D.C.—American Federation of Teachers executive vice president Antonia Cortese today joined a diverse group of education advocates to decry the sacrifice of vital liberal arts courses to increased testing in narrowly focused subject areas. Her comments were part of an event announcing the creation of Common Core, a Washington-based nonpartisan advocacy and research organization devoted to promoting liberal arts and sciences in grades
K-12 across America.

“If we want our kids to comprehend advanced materials, whether they be technical manuals or textbooks, we need to make sure they’re exposed to a broad range of knowledge that includes social studies and literature,” Cortese said.

Citing a recent poll of AFT members performed by Peter D. Hart Research, Cortese noted that 63 percent of AFT teachers agree that “an increased focus on reading and math has resulted in shortchanging other subjects.”

Cortese pointed out that the AFT has been advocating for expansive, knowledge-rich curriculums for decades. Recently, the AFT has been laying the groundwork for a sustained campaign to promote the development of such broad curriculums. That campaign, entitled “Charting the Course,” was unveiled at the AFT’s 2007 QuEST (Quality Educational Standards in Teaching) conference.

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