The Common Core State Standards: Tennessee’s Transition Plan

1. The Common Core State Standards: Tennessee’s Transition Plan Abbreviated Version: March 23, 2012

2. The Common Core State Standards represent six key instructional shifts MATH: • Focus strongly where the Standards focus • Coherence: think across grades, and link to major topics within grades • Rigor: require conceptual understanding, procedural skill and fluency, and application with intensity. ELA: • Building knowledge through content-rich nonfiction and informational texts • Reading and writing grounded in evidencefrom text • Regular practice with complex text and its academic vocabulary

3. This transition gives us the opportunity to make an immediate impact on learning and results

4. Common Core State Standards are narrower… 113 25 There are 1,119 Tennessee ELA standards notcovered in the Common Core

5. PARCC timeline Source: PARCC

6. We will begin state-wide implementation of 3-8 Math standards this year

7. We will identify TNCoreFocus Standards for each grade level for mathematics in grades 3-8 The 3-8 Math TNCore Focus Standards for the 2012-2013 school-year are:

8. Beginning Work of the ELA Sub-Committeeto Determine ELA Focus Standards • College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Reading 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. • College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Writing Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

9. Shift 1 • Shift 1. Building knowledge through content-rich nonfiction and informational texts • ELA and Science, Social Studies, and Technical Subjects • Having a clear understanding that the responsibility for ELA/Literacy Common Core Standards does not only reside within the ELA content area • Understanding that “text” goes beyond print text • ELA- Specific • Providing students with sufficient non-fiction/informational and literary non-fiction texts • Science, Social Studies, and Technical Subjects • Providing students with sufficient primary/secondary sources and examples of research (reports)

10. Shift 2: • Shift 2. Reading and writing grounded in evidence from text • Designing text-dependent questions • Facilitating rich and rigorous conversations around a common text • Using evidence from text to support arguments in classroom discussions and writing rather than writing to decontextualized prompts • Increasing the emphasis on opinion (K-5)/argumentative (6-12) writing • Ensuring that students possess the prerequisite skills to address this shift, e.g. summarizing, synthesizing and citing textual evidence in written response to text

11. Shift 3: • Shift 3. Regular practice with complex text and its academic vocabulary • Understanding how to recognize grade appropriate, complex text • Providing necessary scaffolding and supports that allow ALL students access to grade level, complex texts • Creating more opportunities for teaching close reading of complex text • Building students’ knowledge of general academic words (i.e., words that are more likely to appear in written texts than in speech) • Focusing on vocabulary in context instead of pre-teaching key vocabulary prior to reading

12. What about Pacing Guides? • For 2012-13, Math pacing guides will be based on the current standards in math (minus culled Math SPIs) with a special emphasis on the TNCore Focus Standards • For 2012-13, ELA pacing guides appear to be the current ELA standards with an emphasis student performance in the key shifts of the Common Core State Standards; TNCore Focus Standards will be released between mid-April and June.

13. TCAP We will remove 15-25% of SPIs that are not reflected in Common Core State Standards from the TCAP NEXT year. The specific list of SPI’s will be shared at the end of April. We will narrow the focus of the TCAP and expand use of Constructed Response Assessments Constructed Response We will expand the constructed response assessment for all grades 3-8, focused on the TNCore focus standards. 2013-2014 2011-2012 2012-2013 2014-2015 PARCC NAEP NAEP

14. 2012-2013 Assessment plan, Math 3-8 Student performance on the Constructed Response Assessments will not affect teacher, school or district accountability for the next two years. Small Field Test, May 2012

15. Grades 3-8 math: training and support Our training and support plan will focus on preparing educators with instructional strategies to support student success on the focus standards. * The full building administrative team will be needed at all three days of training.

16. ELA Pilots • This year, we want to broadly support districts with interest to begin piloting implementation of Common Core State Standards in 3-12 ELA. Piloting this coming year will support better preparation at a school, district and state level for full implementation in 13-14 • There will be no changes to the ELA TCAP or End of Course Exams this year. However, strengthening student performance in the key shifts of the Common Core State Standards will support student performance on Tennessee Diploma Project standards and assessments • We will be releasing TNCore focus standards for each grade level in 3-12 ELA and supporting resources and online courses to support implementation of ELA standards. These will be released by April 15. • We will select ELA core coaches to serve as peer leaders in the implementation of Common Core State Standards and inform training for the following summer

17. K-2 focus areas We want to support districts implementing Common Core State standards in K-2 and encourage all districts to move towards full implementation in the 2012-2013 school year. We will: • Support K-2 assessments in math and reading across all districts (more information to come after a review of pilots underway for teacher evaluation) • Release TNCore focus standards for reading and math for each grade and provide online courses for educators to support instruction on the core focus standards • Conduct a survey of districts to better understand current implementation through First to the Top partnership meetings. Convene focus groups of districts with promising practices and share best practices with districts • Encourage districts to focus on direct instruction in reading, especially for students at risk of reaching third grade behind grade level

18. We hope many districts will join the ELA pilots this year

19. Literacy in 6-12 History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects pilots • We believe the implementation of common core state standards is a full-school endeavor, not just a project of math and ELA teachers. To support the integration of all standards and, in particular, the literacy standards, this year we will: • Select and convene core coaches in social studies, science, CTE, fine arts, and physical education to embed literacy (and, where appropriate, math) standards into instruction. We will select a group of core coaches focused in middle school and a group of core coaches for high school. • Explore writing assessments based on informational texts in the relevant content area

20. Preparation for online assessments We are mindful that districts seek technical support preparing for online assessments in 2014-2015. The Division of Data and Communications will work with districts to support the transition to online assessments. This will begin by: • Surveying all districts through technology coordinators in spring 2012 to assess current readiness • Working with all possible partner organizations and technology providers to prepare a state-wide readiness plan by September, 2012

21. Communications from the TDOE Throughout implementation, we will place a premium on consistent and high-quality communications with districts. • The TNCore website (www.tncore.org) will launch April 15thand serve as the site for all state materials on implementation • Questions can be directed to: tncore.questions@tn.gov • Districts will appoint a team of 2-5 people to serve as the common core leadership team. All appointed members will receive monthly TNCore email updates beginning in March. • We will not lose sight of the importance and power of strong student and parent communications and we will provide resources to support this across implementation • Expect More, Achieve Morewebsite will be updated with information about common core implementation

22. Conclusion: summary of next steps • Math 3-8 core coaches will be selected and notified by April 5. A second round of core coaches will be selected in other grades and subject levels later in the spring. All information will be shared through TNCore updates. • The list of SPIs we will drop from the 2013 math TCAP will be shared by June 1. Online courses on the common core focus standards will be shared through TNCore updates in April.