Here's my take - as a math teacher and a mother:

1)  All this talk about deeper understanding of the topics is a lot of bs.  Yes, there are harder questions.  Yes, they have increased the level of difficulty covered for most of the skills.  But how does that lead to "deeper understanding"?  Actually, it doesn't, particularly in the lower grades.  More difficult applications are just more difficult.  They don't lead to a greater "deep" understanding of the mathematical concepts.

2)  The kids who are currently in middle school and in high school are not being given any bridge between the old curriculum and the new.

3)  See next post for an example of #2.