Back To School: District Sing-a-long Mocks Common Core, Gov. Andrew Cuomo

The Bay Shore school district on Long Island in New York is welcoming teachers and administrators back to school this week with their own stinging songfest that took aim at the Common Core standards and Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Teachers and administrators sang and danced to “Welcome Back Bay Shore Teachers” – their own lyrics sung to the tune of “Summer Nights” from the musical Grease.

The Washington Post provides some of the words to the song, including:

Summer’s over had me a blast

Summer’s over happened so fast

Yesterday I’m in the Keys

Yesterday I was at ease

Summer’s gone

Now back to school

Oh no now

Think about Common Core

Common Core, Common Core,

Cuomo isn’t our friend

Common Core Common Core

When’s his second term end?!

Governor Cuomo, sure likes to spend

He proposes cuts till the end

He struts his stuff in Albany!

Treats New York like his property!

The Post reported the school district’s statement about the event which was published in Newsday (subscription required):

The moment depicted in the video was a small part of a larger event celebrating the difference Bay Shore teachers make in the lives of our students. Part of that moment included a lighthearted spoof of some of the issues that are currently at the forefront in public education. The overall purpose of the moment and the event as a whole was to celebrate our schools and the lives that can be changed when an entire community comes together to support our students.

A survey published by Education Next in August shows that public support for the Common Core standards has fallen to a record low.

According to the survey, support for Common Core dropped to 50 percent in 2016, down from 58 percent in 2015 and from 83 percent in 2013.

The poll, which surveyed 4,181 adults, aged 18 and older, including oversamples of parents and teachers, finds that, among teachers, support for the program has dropped from 87 percent in 2013, to 54 percent in 2014, to 44 percent in 2015, and continuing at that level in 2016.