The Incomplete Constellation STAAR Preface the presentation by saying: When we last met, we shared a lot of information about STAAR with you and provided you with a few resources to help you and your staff understand the changes to our assessment system. Although you may be familiar with the information on the following slides, we’ve created this tool for you to use when specifically discussing Readiness and Supporting standards with your teachers. Our hope is that it will help them better understand the importance of teaching ALL of the TEKS.

The Incomplete Constellation STAAR Can you identify this picture? It is the Big Dipper… one of the most recognizable constellations in the night sky. Click Without two of its stars, the dipper might appear to be a series of random stars or at best a two pronged fork or the beginnings of a stick man. The missing stars would most definitely give us an incomplete picture. The new STAAR assessment has both Readiness and Supporting Standards. The question becomes…is one type of standard more important than the other? If we remove or teach only some of our standards… Click Will we be creating an incomplete picture for our students?

Eligible Content Standards STAAR Assessment Blueprint From TEKS FEWER Supporting Readiness STAAR Assessment Blueprint DEEPER We know that 35% of our TEKS are considered Readiness Standards. (click) The STAAR assessement blueprint tells us that these readiness standards will make up 65% of the new STAAR test. (click) Fewer TEKS, (click) tested at a Deeper level. Although the readiness standards are a high priority, it may appear that they are the ONLY priority…A misconception that we must all avoid! The following slides highlight the importance of both readiness and supporting standards working hand in hand. Supporting Readiness

Supporting TEKS Readiness TEKS Arrays Basic Facts 12 x 12 Factors Products 4.4d Use Multiplication To Solve Problems Pictures, Numbers, Words Area Models According to the readiness standard 4.4d, in grade 4 students must be able to use multiplication to solve problems. Within the grade 4 standards there are several supporting TEKS that build student capacity to be successful on this readiness standard. (click) (fly in each of the 6 examples, reading each one) Which of these ideas from the supporting standards is not essential for the development and understanding of multiplication? Are there words, concepts or models that we could/should leave out? No, of course not. Each of the supporting TEKS plays a role in the creation of a complete picture for students. We all know that using multiplication to solve problems is integral to student success in future years. Without the supporting standards, this readiness standard is not developed completely. What does this do to student understanding? click Leaves it shaky at best!

Readiness TEKS 8.4 Multiple Representations Algebraic Expressions Understanding Verbal expressions Readiness TEKS Algebraic Expressions Creating Scatterplots 8.4 Multiple Representations Scatterplot Trends Interpreting Graphs Constructing Line Graphs According to the readiness standard 8.4, in grade 8 students must be able to Generate a different representation of data given another representation of data (such as a table, graph, equation, or verbal description) This means (click) If students are given a table they must be able to create the equation, or when given a graph, create a scenario that would represent the graph, etc… Within the grade 8 standards there are two supporting TEKS that build student capacity to be successful on this readiness standard (click) (fly in each of the 2 examples inside the circle..) Draw conclusions and make predictions by analyzing trends in scatterplots) Find and evaluate an algebraic expression, and However, many of the concepts necessary for success on this readiness standard come from supporting TEKS prior to grade 8. (click) (fly in the 4 remaining arrows) Again, we can see how critical it is for students to master both supporting and readiness standards in order to gain conceptual understanding.

Grade 8 Readiness Standard (8.4) 8.4 Readiness Standard Let’s focus on one Readiness standard. Click What standards are foundational to this Readiness standard? Click to next slide

8.4 Readiness Standard 8 8 8 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 5 5 5 4 4 The foundational skills needed include both Readiness and Supporting Standards across multiple grade levels. So what happens even if only a few Supporting Standards are not mastered? For example, if some of the grade 5 supporting standards were not emphasized? What does this do to the complete picture? Click (The Grade 5 supporting standards are not solid, so the 6th grade standards do not become solidifed…) As you can see, the foundation for 8.4 has not been set so students’ mastery of this concept might be (CLICK) teetering on the edge. If you think the gaps in education exist now, we leave you with the question… How much bigger could they become? While readiness standards are a high priority, we CANNOT let them become our ONLY priority! 3 3 3 3

The Incomplete Constellation: How Gaps Develop STAAR

Discussion Points How did you feel as you attempted to answer the questions? What commonalities did you observe? How did each of the scenarios lead to gaps? What impact did gaps in supporting standards have on later readiness standards? How has an increase in the rigor of STAAR amplified the effects of gaps?

Looking to the Future Look back at each scenario, which factors do we have some control over? Which factors do we have no control over? What steps can you take to ensure these scenarios are not a reality in your district?