Goals and Objectives for the Day

1. Curriculum and Assessment Writing Project:Coaches’ Roles, CCLS in ELA/Math and Intro to Unwrapping

2. Goals and Objectives for the Day • Triads will understand the purpose and goals of the Curriculum and Assessment Writing Project. • Triads will unwrap grade level standards. • Triads will prepare to lead to work of district instructional transformation.

3. Quick Introductions • SCSD staff: • Laura, Margaret, Nate, Sue, Julie, Rhonda, Jim, Bill • Technical assistants • Steve, Kate

4. Agenda • Curriculum and Assessment Overview (8:00 – 9:00) • Content Split • Content Standards Overview (9:00 – 9:30) • Break (9:30 – 9:15) • Standards Protocol (9:45 – 10:45) • Practice (10:45 – 11:30) • Work on Grade Level Unwrapping (11:30 – 12:30) • Share and Reflect – (12:30 – 1:00)

5. Curriculum, Instruction, & Assessment Review • Conducted by Dr. Denise Collier • Focus groups of teachers, instructional coaches, school building and central office administrators • CIA Task Force • August-December 2011 • Presented to SCSD Board of Education December 7

6. Brutal Facts • Only 22% of our students in grades 3-8 are meeting the standard for proficiency in English Language Arts. • Just 25% of our students in grades 3-8 are proficient in mathematics. • Over 70% of our students qualify to receive Academic Intervention Services. • SCSD has a 30% transiency rate. • About half of our students drop out of school. • The district’s graduation rate hovers at around 51%.

7. Survey and Focus Group Common Themes

8. Twelve Recommendations

9. I. Academic Rigor and Program Coherence Recommendations • Raise expectations for student learning and focus the work of teaching and learning on academically rigorous “college-ready” learning PK-12 aligned to the common core standards, rather than on minimal passing standards.

10. I. Academic Rigor and Program Coherence Recommendations • Examine and improve the coherence, rigor, alignment, content, and pacing of the district’s curriculum guides and other instructional tools to ensure that they are aligned to the district’s theory of action for teaching and learning, are based upon “college ready” level academic rigor and mastery of the common core standards, and that they provide sufficient instructional supports to meet the needs of all students.

11. III. Evaluation, Assessment and Use of feedback/Data recommendations • The district should accelerate its efforts to develop a more robust interim assessment system, ensuring alignment with the district’s revised curriculum, and should ensure teacher and principal access to a robust data management and reporting system to facilitate data-driven decision-making.

12. V. Instructional Capacity Building Recommendations • Develop and implement a coherent, content-focused, tiered plan for on-going professional learning of all teachers, instructional leaders, and support staff that is directly and fully aligned to the revised curriculum, common core standards, best practices in instruction, and student performance results.

13. Research Base—Coherent, Aligned Systems

14. Research According to US Department of Education: • Academic Curriculum participation is still the strongest of the pre-collegiate momentum indicators. • High School curriculum reflects 41% of the resources that students bring to higher education; test scores 30%; and class rank / academic GPA 29% For more information see The Toolbox Revisited - designed as a replication of previous study published by the U.S. Department of Education, Answers in the Tool Box: Academic Intensity, Attendance Patterns, and Bachelor’s Degree Attainment (1999) Ready or Not: Creating a High School Diploma That Counts (2004) – Achieve INC

15. Research • “No matter how one divides the universe of students, the curriculum measure produces a higher percent of earning bachelor’s degrees than either of the other measures. The impact of a high school curriculum of high academic intensity and quality on degree completion is far more pronounced and positively – for African American and Latino students than any other pre-collegiate indicator of academic success.” For more information see The Toolbox Revisited - designed as a replication of previous study published by the U.S. Department of Education, Answers in the Tool Box: Academic Intensity, Attendance Patterns, and Bachelor’s Degree Attainment (1999) Ready or Not: Creating a High School Diploma That Counts (2004) – Achieve INC

16. We Believe… If we… • Build the capacity of teachers to deliver high-quality, highly effective instruction, grounded in rigorous standards, curriculum and content, focused on the differing needs of our students and • Increase the instructional expertise and effective coaching strategies of all central office and school leaders and • Hold everyone accountable for specific student outcomes… then We will succeed in reaching our district-wide goals of preparing every student for college and careers.

17. Guiding principles for Curriculum & Instruction Improvement • Grounded in the transformative power of education—college persistence dramatically increases life outcomes for all students • Evidence that urban public schools can succeed in preparing all students for college and career success • District should define the “what” (curriculum, standards of performance, accountability systems, etc.)

18. Guiding principles for Curriculum & Instruction Improvement (cont.) • The schools should decide the “how” (Instructional plans, strategies, collaborative staffing, etc.) • Accountability systems should connect student outcomes (success or failures) with adult outcomes • Central office should be flexible, agile and responsive to support changing school needs • There must be a coherent reform strategy that connects everything to improving teaching and learning

19. Curriculum and Assessment Writing Project • Goals and Outcomes: • Develop capacity to improve instruction throughout the district • Unit plans and assessments for Pre-K through 12 for ELA and Math

20. Phase 1 At a Glance Final Product: Unit Plans for Quarter 1

21. Sample Unit Plan Unpacking the standards will provide triads the foundation to build aligned assessments and teaching points

22. Norms

23. Assumptions • We are preparing for an assessment and level of rigor that is currently unknown. • We can’t afford to wait for more information and direction. • The process of interacting with the standards will build capacity in teachers and lead to improved instruction. • Teachers will transform student achievement in the district. • This will be MESSY, but the learning is the work.

25. Roles and Responsibilities • Writing Team Basics: • 2-5 teachers per grade level • 1 team facilitator • cluster groups (across several grade levels for alignment and coherence) • EL and SPED teacher consultant/writer per cluster group • Coordinator/Supervisor for content area leadership Roles and Responsibilities Basics: • Teacher teams will work collaboratively to draft curriculum maps using the unit template and in alignment with quality guidelines (rubric) and using online submission process • Drafts will be submitted to team facilitator per timeline for review, approval, and submission to content supervisor (using quality rubric) • Content supervisors will examine the maps according to quality guidelines and upon approval will submit for upload to online curriculum system. • Technical assistants and EL and SPED team members will provide expertise and support throughout the development process.

26. Proposed Responsibilities of Curriculum Writers • Coach serves as point person for communication • Collaboration within the writing team and with others in the curriculum initiative • Facilitate through struggle • Your expertise and that of others is critical to quality • Leadership of and advocacy for the curriculum initiative at school and across the district • Accountability to each other and the project impacts the outcome of the work • You are the key to empowering your fellow teachers

27. Wiki Quickie

28. Break into Content Groups

29. CCLS in ELA Anchor Standards

30. Key Ideas & Details • Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

31. Key Ideas & Details • Determine the central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.

32. Craft and Structure • Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.

33. Craft and Structure • Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.

34. Key Ideas & Details • Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.

35. Craft & Structure • Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

36. Integration of Knowledge & Ideas YouTube: “The Great Office War” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVKnF26qFFM

37. Integration of Knowledge & Ideas • Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse formats and media, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words. • Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence. • Analyze how two or more text address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.

38. Break

39. Unwrapping the CCLS What: Why: • We need to know all the parts of the standard to move forward – skills, concepts, necessary prior knowledge • We need to identify the levels of rigor in both the skills and concepts

40. Unwrapping the CCLS Protocol:

41. ELA Example

42. ELA Example

43. ELA Example

44. ELA Example

45. ELA Example

46. Identifying Rigor CONCEPTS LEVEL OF RIGOR INCREASES SKILLS

47. ELA Example

48. Fish Bowl! Unwrapping the CCLS • RI.4.2 • Determine the main idea of a text and explain how it is supported by key details; summarize the text. • Use the protocol to code and assign levels of rigor • Use Appendix B for concept/skill elaboration • Read performance task for RI.4.2 on page 76 • Read “Telescopes” on page 75 • Jot the steps it took to perform the task – Be Meta!

49. Let’s Try One Together!

50. Unwrap Your Grade Level Standards With your triad, unwrap the following standards: RL.1 RL.2 RI.1 RI.2 Record on the wiki!