Discovery Education Common Core Academy: Taking A Bite Out of the Common Core State Standards

1. Discovery Education Common Core Academy:Taking A Bite Out of the Common Core State Standards January 17-18, 2013 Karen M. Beerer, Ed.D. Karen_beerer@discovery.com

2. Welcome and Introductions • Karen M. Beerer, Ed.D. - 28 years in public education: classroom teacher, reading specialist, building principal, curriculum director, assistant superintendent

5. What skills and knowledge will Caiden need to be successful as an adult? “Leaders will have to be multilingual, flexible, internationally mobile and adaptable. But, most crucial of all, they must be highly collaborative and have strong conceptual and strategic thinking skills.” - Hay Group, “Building the New Leader,” Leadership for 2030 The message is clear: in 21st century America, education beyond high school is the passport to the American Dream. - Pathways to Prosperity, Harvard University, 2011

6. AND YET… • Nearly 70 percent of high school graduates now go to college within two years of graduating. But only about 4 in 10 Americans have obtained either an associate’s or bachelor’s degree by their mid-twenties. • Roughly another 10 percent have earned a certificate. • Only 56 percent of those enrolling in a four-year college attain a bachelor’s degree after six years, and less than 30 percent of those who enroll in community college succeed in obtaining an associate’s degree within three years.

7. INTERESTING? The National Center for Educational Achievement (NCEA), in partnership with the Arizona Department of Education, released its 2011 Higher Performing Schools List for Arizona. The list identifies 13 schools in Arizona that have consistently outperformed their peers with similar student populations over a three year period…(November 2011). Kansas student proficiencies in reading and math have increase 40 percent over the past decade and exceed 80 percent at every level (Kansas Association of School Boards, January, 2012). Marion Public Schools in Michigan have seen improvement in the district’s MEAP scores, which increased from 65 percent overall efficiency in 2003 to 92 percent in 2011…(Cadillac News, September, 2012) More than 50 district in the state of Tennessee saw double-digit growth over last year in Algebra I. Gains were made in Tennessee’s largest school district--- in third through eights grade math, the percent of students who were proficient or advanced increased 6.5 percentage points…(Bulletin Times, October, 2012).

8. EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVES • WHOLE LANGUAGE? • OUTCOMES-BASED EDUCATION? • BLOCK SCHEDULING? • ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF INSTRUCTION? • TESA?

9. Discovery Education’s CCSS Academy Learning Targets  I CAN explain the format, structure and content of the Common Core ELA and Math Standards and how they are different from our current standards, specifically describing the instructional shifts.  I CAN describe the level of rigor needed in my instruction to ensure that my students perform well on assessments designed to measure the Common Core Standards in ELA and Math.  I CAN assess the current state of my curriculum, instruction and assessment plans and compare them to the CCSS to determine next steps.  I CAN identify one small step that I can implement in my classroom/school/district setting tomorrow that will move my students toward higher levels of achievement (aka: the Common Core.)

11. What Does Workplace Readiness Really Mean? • Mr. Tony Iannelli • President/CEO Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce • Under Tony’s leadership, the Chamber has now grown to nearly 5,000 members and is currently the largest in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and the 9th largest Chamber in the United States. • Recognized with the Latino Leadership Alliance Distinguished Service Award, The William Allen Distinguished Alumni Award, The Kids Peace Community Leader Award, the Muhlenberg College Entrepreneur Award, and the Lehigh Valley Human Relations Award. • Received the Regional Entrepreneur of the Year Award. • Host of Business Matters, the region’s premier local business TV show, a fast paced, hot topics interview show which is broadcast by 69 WFMZ-TV .

12. Getting Ready… • Setting up the back channel: http://todaysmeet.com/CommonCoreELA • Find your clock partners:

13. In Addition to Workplace Readiness…Other Key Terms Key Word Sort: Review the terms from the Standards. Sort them into categories. Within the terms, decide on those that are the labels for the categories.

14. Taking a Standards “Tour” • Find your 12:00 partner. • On the wiki, open your tour “map” to the Common Core Standards. • With your partner, take a tour through the standards. • When you finish, complete the “ticket” together on your table.

15. In Addition to Workplace Readiness…Other Key Terms Key Word Sort: Review your word sort now that you’ve gone through the standards – any changes?

16. Some Key Points

17. The ELA Structure • The standards are comprised of a set of Anchor Standards that are the same across K-12 and organized around four strands: • Reading • Writing • Listening & Speaking • Language

18. Literacy Standards in Content Areas • The same Anchor Standards for Reading and Writing apply to the content areas – History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects. • It is important to note that the 6-12 literacy standards are not meant to replace the content standards in those areas, but rather to supplement them.

19. Anchor Standards

20. Mathematics Standards The Structure: 8 Standards for Mathematical Practice which span K-12 Grades K-8 have grade-level specific standards High School Standards are listed in conceptual categories (e.g., Functions, Number & Quantity)

25. Understanding the Progression of the Standards • Activity: Grow A Standard • Find Your 3:00 Clock Partner • “Grow” 3 Standards: •  Reading •  Writing •  Geometry Reflection Questions: • What do you notice about the progression of the standards? • What is an important takeaway about the progression of the standards? • How would you explain the progression of the standards to a colleague?

26. Reflecting on the Common Core State Standards

27. Instructional Shifts – Text Rendering • Find Your Three o’Clock Partner. • Read the Instructional Shifts for ELA and for Math • Highlight a sentence, phrase and word that are meaningful to your understanding of the shifts • Write your sentence, phrase and word on separate pieces of paper • Share the meaningful sentences, phrases and words with your partner • Together, decide on one sentence, one phrase and one word that is the best way to highlight the shifts

28. Hearing from the Experts What do these instructional shifts mean for teachers?

29. Needs Assessment Where Are You?

30. Instructional Shift “Look Fors”

31. What Do These Shifts Look Like? The teacher put students into teams to work on a math task. I wonder why the teacher chose teams of 4? It seems like this is a complex task and I wonder if smaller groups would be more beneficial. Video: Andrea Smith: Grade 6: Algebraic Thinking

32. Reflections Where Are You?

34. A Discussion on Rigor Find Your 9:00 partner. http://www.stixy.com/guest/249777 Password: rigor

35. How To Ensure Rigor • Tri-State Collaborative Quality Review Rubric

36. Wrap-Up  I CAN explain the format, structure and content of the Common Core ELA and Math Standards and how they are different from our current standards, specifically describing the instructional shifts.  I CAN describe the level of rigor needed in my instruction to ensure that my students perform well on assessments designed to measure the Common Core Standards in ELA and Math.  I CAN assess the current state of my curriculum, instruction and assessment plans and compare them to the CCSS to determine next steps.  I CAN identify one small step that I can implement in my classroom/school/district setting tomorrow that will move my students toward higher levels of achievement (aka: the Common Core.)