The links you provide for common core are not evidence of "considerable damage". The first is an opinion piece and the second is much worse - a blog post following up on an article whose argument against common core is based primarily on believing the claims in a satire article

Can’t do anything to please you people, even spending 35 billion a year on charity wouldn’t suffice.

So, you are saying nobody should scrutinize the charity?

Donate the money to someone completely independent, and stop talking about it.

don't sell yourself short, I'm sure you could find an issue with it even if he did that.

A better view of the things they've learned while trying to help the world is Melinda Gate's interview with Dave Letterman on his Netflix show.

Melinda talked about how they were told by the women in small African villages not to bring condoms, that the women wanted birth control in the form for Depro-Prevara shots. Condoms have the stigma of AIDS prevention and so a wife that wants her mate to use a condom is seen as suggesting that he has been unfaithful and is infected.

How is the use of malaria nets for fishing (or chicken coops, or crop covers) somehow Gates’ fault?