As a veteran teacher, I believe that Utah has more to offer in our state standards than what was handed to us with these national CCSS.  I, as a teacher and as a parent, want to take back local control over education.  Teachers and students deserve better.  I know for a fact that these standards ARE NOT career and college ready.  I am also a mother of 5 children.  I have lived in both Japan and in Taiwan.  The push to make standardized testing HIGH STAKES and attached to teachers pay is outrageous!  Talk about bullying!  The English standards are NOT better.  There is value and solid research in brain development of fiction and literature that will be lost with so much informational text.  I have read the standards in all grades.  THEY ARE NOT AGE APPROPRIATE!  Had a certified teacher written them, they would have been.  Also, I know for a fact that by moving back Algebra to 9th grade, IT IS A HUGE STEP BACKWARDS IN MATH.  My children do school after school because of my experience in both Japan and in Taiwan.  They take Kumon math.  IT IS TESTED.  It is a 50 yr old method of teaching math that is OPPOSITE OF CCSS methods of teaching math. My kids start Algebra by 7th grade!  They are two years ahead!  Utah needs to gain back LOCAL control over education.  I'm shocked that we feel for Obama's Trojan horse.  Please Pass HB 342 for not only our poor children who will be hurt with these substandard national standards, but for the crying parents who are having to deal with the fall out and for the fearful teachers who are considering leaving the profession.  By the way, I know that Bill Gates is pushing Job Corp type BABYSITTER type teachers with his movie titled, "TEACH" and pushing Teach America.  Caring, talented and creative teachers, like myself, who don't get paid enough to be BULLIED will leave the profession.  SO SAD....