STANDARDS, STANDARDS, EVERYWHERE…: DO STANDARDS= “STANDARDS-BASED INSTRUCTION”? Bill Moore, Policy Associate, SBCTC Director, Transition Math Project (TMP) “Multiplying the Options” conference Everett Community College June 2010

WHY STANDARDS? Are standards important in education, and if so, why? How, if at all, do standards shape and influence your work as a teacher, and which standards do you use? What do you see as the real (or potential) negatives of state-level defined standards?

CRMS/K-12 CROSSWALK

C OMMON CORE H IGH S CHOOL M ATHEMATICS S TANDARDS Key areas of emphasis: Applying mathematical ways of thinking to real world issues and challenges Developing a depth of understanding and ability to transfer understandings to novel situations Using mathematical modeling as well as the use of mathematics and statistics to analyze empirical situations and improve decisions 5 conceptual categories: Number and Quantity, Algebra, Functions, Geometry, and Statistics and Probability

A STANDARDS COMPARISON: LOOKING AT FUNCTIONS College Readiness Math Standards, Common Core 1. What do you find surprising here? 2. How are these standards reflected in the math courses at your school? Reviewing example problems: Reactions, comments?

SUPPORTING STANDARDS OR A TESTING INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX?

Teacher support through professional “communities of practice” M EANINGFUL STANDARDS - BASED INSTRUCTION What Content is Taught How Content is Taught & Learned How Content is Assessed We put an enormous amount of energy into changing structures and usually leave instructional practice untouched… Richard Elmore, 2002 “The standards come alive when teachers study student work, collaborate with other teachers to improve their understanding of subjects and students’ thinking, and develop new approaches to teaching that are relevant and useful for them and their students.” Linda Darling- Hammond, 1997

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS?