Common Core Standards: We Must Deliver NC WRESA Conference June 27, 2011 Dr. Judith A. Rizzo Executive Director and CEO

Why Common Core State Standards? Disparate standards across states Student mobility Entry-level workforce skills and labor force needs are changing 21 st century global competition Technology’s impact on the workplace

Important Distinction Standards ≠ Curriculum

Growing NC Industries The worst of the recession is behind us; job growth will resume as North Carolina’s employers ask more of its workforce. Declining NC industries are the ones that required the least amount of education; of the growing industries, 75% will require at least some college.

Source: The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, 2010.

Advantages of common standards Consistent learning goals for all students regardless of where they live Too many students graduating from high school and passing required tests but not ready for college and career success Opportunities for system efficiencies so resources can be dedicated to improving student performance

NC Student Performance Data There is still a great deal of work to be done to ensure every child graduates college and career ready Grade 4 - NC State Assessments Students proficient in Language Arts: 71% Students proficient in Mathematics: 83% Grade 8 – NC State Assessments Students proficient in Language Arts: 68% Students proficient in Mathematics: 81%

College Remediation Rates According to the NC Community College System (NCCCS), in the fall of 2009: – 61% of first-time, credential-seeking NCCCS students were enrolled in at least one developmental course in English, reading, or math, and; – 33% were enrolled in two or more developmental courses.

College Remediation Rates Based on data from The University of North Carolina, nearly one in ten first-year students (9.5%) who began at a UNC institution in the fall of 2008 took at least one remedial course in their first semester.

Disconnect between expectations Source: ACT’s Rigor at Risk 2007

Employers say students are unprepared 46% of applicants have inadequate work habits 40% are inadequately prepared in math 38% are inadequately prepared in writing Source: Rising to the Challenge

Common Core State Standards – Criteria Fewer, clearer, and higher Aligned with college and career expectations Collaborative development building upon the best of existing state standards Based on evidence and research Internationally benchmarked to ensure students are globally competitive

Common Core State Standards – Development Process Led by CCSSO and NGA K-12 educators, researchers, and higher education experts from throughout the country – including NC Multiple drafts and opportunities for input Built upon the best state standards Final review by validation committee

Teachers support common standards According to a 2010 national survey of teachers: 90% believe that the establishment of common standards across all states would have a moderate to very strong impact on improving student achievement. Source: Scholastic’s Primary Sources: America’s Teachers on America’s Schools 2010

“I support the Common State Standards because it just makes sense. If a student moves from one state to the next state, they ought to know what the expectations are from state to state. “I also like the Common Core Standards because we know that good teaching is beginning with the end in mind and in this case, the end in mind is being college and career ready.” - Leah Luke, 2010 Wisconsin Teacher of the Year

Implementation – Critical Next Steps Curriculum Instructional materials (including technology based; open source) Assessment system Accountability Teacher and administrator pre-service preparation and professional development

State Collaboratives on Assessment and Student Standards (SCASS) 31 states—focused on advocacy, program involvement, and professional development Formed in response to specific project needs – Specific content areas, policy, psychometric problems, technology Strives to develop and implement high standards and valid assessment systems Brings together SEA career service professionals to solve complex problems impacting the states

Related Work In NC Working with RESAs, NC DPI will hold six regional institutes throughout the state  Teams of 10 people from each LEA will be trained  Team members will include ELA and math content specialists, an instructional technology representation, if applicable, and others  DPI staff will help each LEA develop a specific professional development plan for their LEA  Will go beyond ELA and math because NC changed its standards in other content areas as well Every three 3 months, NC DPI will work with the RESAs to do "check-ins" with the LEAs

Key resources: Briefing packet – available now - Writer videos – finalized mid-July (Common Core State Standards) (SCASS information, additional resources) (Demo lesson—Bringing the Common Core to Life: “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” and “Gettysburg Address”) (PARCC/EDI Implementation Workbook) (SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium) (Parent Guides on Common Core State Standards)