Florida Department of Education

1. Florida Departmentof Education Sally Sanders Science Curriculum Specialist

2. Science SupportCitrus County Schools • Topics • Textbook Adoptions • School Chemical Cleanout Campaign • Sunshine State Standards Revision • Resources • Science Curriculum Development and FCAT Preparation

3. Science Textbook Adoptions • The State Science Instructional Materials Committees met in September and October to make recommendations. • The list has been approved for adoption by Commissioner Winn and will go on state contract for April 1, 2006 – March 31, 2012.

4. SC3 – School Chemical Cleanout Campaign • Partnership between the DOE and the DEP • http://www.dep.state.fl.us/waste/categories/hazardous/pages/schoolchemicals.htm. • john.erickson@dep.state.fl.us850.245.8767 • Goals • Assist schools with chemical disposal • Identify dangerous chemicals • Promote safe chemical management • Provide teacher training • Comply with local, state and federal guidelines

5. Sunshine State StandardsRevision Process In 2005, the SSS were reviewed by • The College Board in Language Arts and Mathematics • The International Center for Leadership in Education under Bill Daggett An Internet stakeholder input system in spring 2005 was posted on the DOE website so that stakeholders could suggest changes to individual benchmarks in all subjects.

6. Reviewer comments on the SSS • The rigor of the early curriculum is not carried forward through the middle and high school years. • A lack of specificity in the middle grades contributes to a lack of rigor • This lack of progressive development or spiraling across grades levels represents the most pressing issue to be addressed

7. Blueprint to Guide Revision Process • The original SSS were designed for use by curriculum developers rather than for direct use by teachers, even though teachers are most often the curriculum developers. It was intended that the standards would be placed in the instructional context of a lesson or learning activity that would provide more specific expectations of students. A lack of specificity was intentional to allow flexibility in local curriculum development. The new benchmarks will be designed for more direct use by teachers and will need to provide more specific guidance to teachers as to what needs to be taught and, even, how it might be taught.

8. Blueprint to Guide Revision Process • Standards will be benchmarked at each grade for K-5 in every subject. • Language Arts standards will be benchmarked for each grade 6-12. • Mathematics will be benchmarked at each grade K-8. • GLEs and benchmarks will be substituted for each other, combined or eliminated. There will be only benchmarks in the new SSS and no GLEs.

9. Blueprint to Guide Revision Process • All benchmarks and GLEs must be reviewed to determine those that represent the absolute essential learning for which the state will hold schools and students accountable.  • The strands level and the standards level will not be revised, thus preserving broad content coverage. • Benchmarks or GLEs that are not absolutely vital to the core of knowledge and skills in the subject that students must master to be successful in the 21st century should be deleted or incorporated into other items.

10. Blueprint to Guide Revision Process • As a rough guideline, all the benchmarks for a grade should be able to be taught and learned in about 100 days throughout the school year, leaving the remaining instructional time for reteaching, remediation, review, maintenance and for additional content.  It is expected that as a guideline 25- 30% of the benchmarks or GLEs should be eliminated in each subject.

11. Blueprint to Guide Revision Process • Benchmarks must be developmentally appropriateand rigorous by spiraling knowledge and skills up through the grades. • Benchmarks must require relevance by applying prior knowledge and experiences of students and in addressing real world applications that interest them and for which they must be prepared in the adult world of postsecondary education, in the workplace and to be a responsible family member and citizen. 

12. Resources for Teacher Certification • Florida Space Research Institute’s Advanced Learning Environment offers free web-based courses for math and science teachers: www.advancedlearningenvironment.org

13. Curriculum Development and FCAT Preparation • Science Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment (FCAT) and Textbook Development are all driven by the Sunshine State Standards. • SSS are located on the Florida Department of Education’s website: www.fldoe.org • Classroom labs and activities that support instruction in the Sunshine State Standards are necessary for students to develop and apply the skills assessed on FCAT Science.

14. Curriculum Development and FCAT Preparation: Resources • FCAT Simulation software from Test Tools, Inc.(www.testtools.com) • Digging Into FCAT Science book by FL Educational Tools, Inc. (http://www.fledtools.com ) • Harcourt has a program in FCAT format: Assessing the standards • Many textbooks have correlations to the FCAT and also provide FCAT prep materials

15. Curriculum Development and FCAT Preparation: Resources • FCAT resources available on the DOE website (click on “FCAT” under the site index.) • Sample Test Materials • Florida Inquires (report on the 2005 released test items) • FCAT Handbook (general information) • Test Item Specifications