Controversy has swirled around the Common Core Standards in Mathematics in the U.S. for the last few years, with parents, students, and teachers alike expressing outward frustration.

In a recent discussion at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., the Center for Education Reform outlined their new manifesto to “engage collective communities” in education, but other issues were certainly brought to the forefront.

When Independent Journal Review asked Donald Hense, Chair and CEO of Friendship Public Charter Schools in D.C., if he felt that Common Core’s way of solving math problems is working, he said “give it time”:

“It’s far too early to make that decision. I say that because we are just now to the point where teachers are more proficient in teaching the more detailed view of mathematics. We’re no longer saying 2 + 2 = 4; it has taken some time and it’s going to take some time for teachers to become proficient.”

As Independent Journal Review passed the message along to teachers, Lisa Wall Beaman from Nashville, Tennessee, gave a heartbreaking look at what it’s doing to some in the education community:

“The teachers embracing Common Core are receiving awards and acclaim from the system. Yet, I’ve met two teachers’ assistants, who make less than 12K a year, one who had been on the job for 20 years. Through tears, she said, “we were there to help these confused students after the lessons, with their homework; Common Core math was impossible for them and for us. I felt so inadequate, I had to leave the kids, this was the last straw.” Of course, I’ve heard many parents express extreme frustration with an inability to assist even young children with their Common Core math work.”

While many teachers say Common Core causes more headaches than it should, Jules Kathryn, who teaches at Rochester Public Schools in Michigan, explained to Independent Journal Review that she’s seen kids succeed using the Common Core method:

“It was super impressive, they had to answer math questions on the board and explain how they did it, and call on students who solved it a different way. They then did well writing their explanations down. Parents seem to be the ones that don’t like it the most because they can’t help their kids with homework.”

That said, she does note the tests are totally “jacked up”:

“I read questions that forced students to answer a question a certain way, when they learned all the ways in order to pick their favorite, so that made no sense. Parents need to allow change but the assessments need to be rewritten.”

New research from Georgia State University recently found that many elementary level teachers reported “frustration” over Common Core math. In fact, only two out of ten teachers said they were “very familiar” with the standards, with one in four reporting never having been trained on how to teach the curriculum to students.

Common Core has been adopted by 45 states, including Washington, D.C., and purports to emphasize that students should not only be able to solve math problems, but also have the ability to explain how numbers relate to one another.