The Massachusetts Education Miracle?

I've been looking at the Core Knowledge Sequence because it is the program used by Stratford School.
It is touted as being the cause of Massachusett's recent success in improving test scores and the like. Its creator is E. D. Hirsch.

From 2009: E. D. Hirsch’s Curriculum for Democracy
And, just recently: The Massachusetts Exception

More info:
E.D. Hirsch Jr.: Common Core Standards could revolutionize reading instruction
Educational Theory of E.D. Hirsch

I quickly examined the curriculum for elementary grades. History cannot help but be "indoctrination" as it is a narrative with a viewpoint, not a "neutral" science, so what is the official perspective of the school or of the program? Science is taught way too early, even if the pedagogy they think they are using is sound - teaching the "fundamentals" of nature at an early age and then building upon it. That's still memorization, not knowledge, since one cannot have direct sense experience of the "atomic level."

Still, it may be good with respect to reading, writing, and math skills. I haven't checked to see how much of the liberal arts the curriculum embodies - the description at the school claims that they teach students how to think, write, and speak.

Some videos:


Something from way back -