Chris Minnich, Executive Director Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) July 26, 2013 Common Core State Standards

 Bipartisan initiative of state leaders  led by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and National Governors Association (NGA)  developed K-12 standards in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics

College and Career Readiness: Anchor for the Common Core  Gap between high school expectations for students and what students are expected to do in college/career  Among high school graduates, only half are academically prepared for postsecondary education (Greene & Winters, 2005).  Career-readiness and college-readiness levels are very similar.  K-12 standards were back-mapped from college and career expectations.

Remediation rates and costs are staggering As much as 40% of all students entering 4-year colleges need remediation in one or more courses As much as 63% in 2-year colleges Degree attainment rates are disappointing Fewer than 42% of adults aged hold college degrees Source: The College Completion Agenda 2010 Progress Report, The College Board College Remediation and Graduation Rates

How the demand for skills has changed Economy-wide measures of routine and non-routine task input (US) (Levy and Murnane) Mean task input as percentiles of the 1960 task distribution The dilemma of schools: The skills that are easiest to teach and test are also the ones that are easiest to digitise, automate and outsource

6 6 Key Cognitive Strategies Key Learning Skills and Techniques Problem Formulation Research Interpretation Communication Precision & Accuracy Structure of Knowledge Challenge Level Value Attribution Effort Key Content Knowledge think:know: Ownership of Learning Learning Techniques act: Postsecondary Awareness Postsecondary Costs Matriculation Career Awareness Role and Identity Self-advocacy go: Key Transition Knowledge and Skills Source: Dr. David Conley, Educational Policy Improvement Center College and Career Readiness

Why Common Standards? Previously, every state had its own set of academic standards and different expectations of student performance. Consistency Common standards can help create more equal access to an excellent education. Equity Students need the knowledge and skills that will prepare them for college and career in our global economy. Opportunity Previous standards were “a mile wide and an inch deep.” These new standards are clear and coherent in order to help students, parents, and teachers understand what is expected. Clarity Common standards create a foundation for districts and states to work collaboratively and achieve economies of scale. Economies of Scale

English Language Arts (ELA) Shifts Building knowledge through content- rich non-fiction and informational texts in addition to literature Non-Fiction Reading and writing are grounded in evidence from the text Evidence from the Text Regular practice with complex text and its academic vocabulary (words like “synthesize” and “correspond”) Complex Text & Academic Vocabulary

Math Shifts 2-4 concepts focused on deeply in each grade Focus Concepts logically connected from one grade to the next and linked to other major topics within the grade Coherence Fluency with arithmetic, application of knowledge to real world situations, and deep understanding of mathematical concepts Rigor

Implementing the Common Core Professional Development Public Awareness Curriculum & Instructional Materials Technology Common Core Implementation

New Assessments  Two state-led assessment consortia  Partnership for Readiness for College and Career (PARCC)  SMARTER Balanced  Federal Race to the Top (RTTT) grant of $350M +  New summative assessments used for accountability purposes in school year

What will the new tests be like?  Computer-based  Beyond multiple choice  Measure what matters for college and career success  Depth of understanding and higher- order thinking skills  Provide precise, actionable information

Based on the information in the text “Biography of Amelia Earhart,” write an essay that summarizes and explains the challenges Earhart faced throughout her life. Remember to use textual evidence to support your ideas. PARCC: Grade 7 Reading and Writing Item

Smarter Balanced: Grade 11 Writing Item

PARCC Assessment Sample Item: Math Grade 3

Smarter Balanced: Math Grade 4

What are the Publishers’ Criteria? A set of four documents intended to guide the design, evaluation, and selection of new materials or revision of existing materials  ELA/Literacy K-2 and 3-11  Mathematics K-8 and Mathematics 9-12 Available on and training materials available on Released by CCSSO, NGA, Achieve, the Council of Great City Schools and NASBE 18

What’s In and What’s Out? INOUT 1. Daily encounters w/complex texts1. Leveled texts (only) 2. Texts worthy of close attention2. Reading any ‘ol text 3. Balance of literary and Info texts3. Solely literature 4. Coherent sequences of texts4. Collection of unrelated texts 5. Mostly text-dependent questions5. Mostly text-to-self questions 6. Evidence-based analyses6. Personal opinions about issues 7. Accent on academic vocabulary7. Accent on literary terminology 8. Emphasis on reading & re-reading8. Emphasis on pre-reading 9. Reading strategies 10. Pre-mediation10. (Just) Remediation

It all boils down to... Texts Worth Reading and Questions Worth Answering!

Some Old Ways of Doing Business – What’s Out A different topic every day Every topic treated as equally important Elementary students dipping into advanced topics at the expense of mastering fundamentals Endless review Reliance on rote learning at expense of concepts Mnemonics or tricks 21

Grade Priorities in Support of Rich Instruction and Expectations of Fluency and Conceptual Understanding K–2 Addition and subtraction, measurement using whole number quantities 3–5 Multiplication and division of whole numbers and fractions 6 Ratios and proportional reasoning; early expressions and equations 7 Ratios and proportional reasoning; arithmetic of rational numbers 8 Linear algebra/linear functions Major Work of Grade in K-8 Mathematics

Indicators of Quality Problems are worth doing Teacher materials support teacher study Use of manipulatives follows best practices Materials are carefully reviewed (freedom from errors, grade-level appropriateness, freedom from bias) Visual design isn’t distracting or chaotic Support for English language learners is thoughtful and helps those learners to meet the same standards as all other students 23

Questions and Comments Chris Minnich, Executive Director Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO)