Creating a Vision for Implementation

Transcription

1 Creating a Vision for Implementation Judy F. Carr Clarity about expectations is at the heart of a leadership vision for implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). To create a vision is to develop one s own full and complete understanding of the standards and then to live and breathe that understanding in all aspects of one s work with teachers, students, and the community. Implementation of the Common Core standards, both for English language arts (ELA) and literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subject and for mathematics, requires a clear vision of what the standards are, what they look like in practice in classrooms and schools, and how to best accomplish full implementation of the standards. The Vision of the Standards The Common Core standards are designed to support all students in becoming college and career ready as evidenced by the following characteristics: They demonstrate independence. They build strong content knowledge. They respond to the varying demands of audience, task, purpose, and discipline. They comprehend as well as critique. They value evidence. They use technology and digital media strategically and capably. They come to understand other perspectives and cultures. (National Governors Association for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010, p. 7) To this end, students must be readers, writers, and users of language and mathematics both in and beyond the classroom. The vision of students who are truly college and career ready carries with it assumptions about the shifts in learning experiences and results that must be made available to all students in kindergarten through grade 12. A recent articulation of the shifts by the New York State Department of Education (2012, p. 7), as shown in Figure 1, provides clear expectations for implementation of the instructional shifts in English language arts and literacy and mathematics. 1

2 Figure 1 IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CCSS INSTRUCTIONAL SHIFTS English Language Arts/Literacy 1. All students in the district read a balance of non-fiction and fiction. 2. All students in the district build content knowledge by reading primary and secondary sources with the support of their ELA and content area teachers. 3. All students in the district read texts at appropriate complexity for their grade. 4. All students in the district participate, throughout the day every day, in evidence-based conversation about text. 5. All students in the district, throughout their day every day, produce evidence based writing about sources. 6. All students in the district build academic vocabulary by reading increasingly complex texts and learning new and powerful words. Mathematics 7. All math curricula in the district focuses closely on concepts articulated by CCSS for each grade with priority devoted to emphasized domains and standards. 8. All math curricula in the district progress strategically across grades and all teachers are keenly aware of where those progressions and the way they play out in preceding and following grades. 9. All students in the district are expected to have speed and accuracy with simple calculations and are asked to memorize, through repetition, core functions for their grade level. 10. All students in the district are able to demonstrate deep conceptual understanding of core math concepts by applying them to new situations and writing and speaking about their mathematical reasoning. 11. All students in the district are expected to use math and choose the appropriate concept for application even when they are not prompted to do so. All teachers of math concepts provide opportunities at all grade levels for students to apply math in real world situations. 12. All students in the district are both practicing and understanding grade level concepts with equal intensity. Although this version of the shifts, as with others like it, omits key elements of the standards themselves such as the emphasis on foundational skills for reading in grades K 2 and the connection of the Standards for Mathematical Practice to the math content that is the focus for each 2

3 grade level it does, nonetheless, provide a broad representation of important ways the CCSS differ from much of what is currently seen in schools and classrooms in the United States. A Vision of Implementation As important as it is to present a clear vision of what the CCSS look like in practice, it is equally essential to see clearly the stages that will lead to full implementation of the standards. All the professional development in the world will be wasted if no changes are in practice in classrooms. Students cannot demonstrate complex understandings and skills they have had no opportunity to learn because the shifts are not yet part of the instruction and assessment they are receiving. Implementing the CCSS means ensuring that the shifts are in routine use in all classrooms. Teachers and administrators at Conrad Ball Middle School in Loveland, Colo., developed an Innovation Configuration Map for Transitional Dialogue to assist them in implementing the Common standards. Shown below, this chart can be used for self-assessment by individual teachers, dialogue among grade-level or department teams, and decision making and planning by schoolwide administrator and teacher leadership teams. The chart captures the progression from initial awareness of the standards, to having teachers fully engaged in delivering a standards-based curriculum, to a system that is both standards- and data-driven. As awareness and implementation progress, greater student engagement occurs, evidenced through their taking responsibility for their own learning of standards by setting goals and asserting individual initiative. The chart also addresses multiple dimensions of CCSS implementation: understanding of the standards themselves, student engagement, curriculum planning, assessment and use of data, and instruction. This chart provides a rich context for determining one s own vision of implementation of the standards. Consider these questions as you review Figure 2: How far do we want to take the standards? What will implementation of the CCSS look like when we are successful? 3

4 Figure 2 Common Core State Standards Configuration Map for Transitional Dialogue This tool can help you identify the level of your implementation of best practices for implementing the Common Core State Standards. It briefly describes how one might respond to various standards-based questions during the transition to full implementation of the CCSS. Level of Implementation Teacher Questions 1 Standards Awareness 2 3 Standards Based 4 5 Standards & Data Driven Common Core Standards How do students learn the Common Core Standards in your classroom? What Common Core Standards should I teach? I know what the Common Core Standards are and I use them to focus my planning. I know the Common Core Standards and have determined which are essential, important and nice to know. I inform my students of which Common Core Standards we will be focusing on before we begin instruction and let them know which ones they need to master. My students can explain what they are expected to know and be able to do using specific language and examples. Curriculum & Unit Planning How is student learning organized in your classroom? I wonder if I am teaching the Common Core Standards? The textbook has always been my curriculum. I know my curriculum is aligned with the Common Core Standards. I have a scope and sequence for the school year. I use backwards planning to map each unit. I know what students need to learn, what proficiency looks like, and what they will do to learn it. My students understand our progress through the curriculum because I provide them with a road map of their learning. My students take charge of their progress through the curriculum; they know what Common Core Standards they have attained and what they need to learn next. Assessment How is student learning assessed in your classroom? I am not sure how to assess the Common Core Standards. I have always used a commercially prepared test or prepare one just before giving it. I align assessments with the Common Core Standards. I ve determined what is the best way for students to show me they have learned each learning target tied to the Common Core Standards. I share my assessment expectations with students up front. I always share models and scoring guides tied directly to the Common Core Standards. They know how they will need to demonstrate their learning. I consistently use a variety of diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments so that I know specific student learning needs and challenges throughout the unit. My students are able to communicate their level of learning in relation to the Common Core Standards at all times. 4

5 Figure 2 (continued) Common Core State Standards Configuration Map for Transitional Dialogue This tool can help you identify the level of your implementation of best practices for implementing the Common Core State Standards. It briefly describes how one might respond to various standards-based questions during the transition to full implementation of the CCSS. Level of Implementation Teacher Questions 1 Standards Awareness 2 3 Standards Based 4 5 Standards & Data Driven Analysis of Data How is student learning analyzed and used in your classroom? Instruction How do you decide which instructional strategies to use to ensure learning? I know when my students are passing or failing, but not whether they have met or exceeded a Common Core Standard. I use the instructional strategies I feel most comfortable with. I have a good idea of where students are in relation to Common Core Standards and set learning targets. I consistently use research-based instructional strategies to support student learning. I know where students are in relation to each Common Core Standard and related exemplars and provide students with frequent descriptive and constructive feedback. I use the gradual release of responsibility model to move from guided practice to independence and to craft student learning experiences. Source: From J. Carr and CCR, 2012, with permission of Conrad Ball Middle School, Loveland, CO. I know where my students are on a daily basis. I use ongoing assessments to refine, reteach and extend learning when necessary. I have seamlessly integrated ongoing assessment into my instruction so that I can differentiate to ensure student learning in relation to the Common Core Standards. My students selfassess and interpret data regarding their own knowledge and skills. They can determine their own next steps for learning. My students have a toolkit of their own learning strategies to use when they don t understand the learning required by the Common Core Standards. 5

6 Effective implementation of the CCSS is based on a clear vision of what the standards look like in practice in real classrooms and schools coupled with a clear understanding of the phases of implementation. Together, the shifts and the configuration map create a path to follow toward successful student learning to the Common Core standards. References National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010). Common Core State Standards for English language arts and literacy in history/ social studies, science, and technical subjects. Retrieved from assets/ccssi_ela%20standards.pdf New York State Department of Education. (2012). CCSS-APPR and DDI workbook for network team implementation. Retrieved from CCSS-APPR-and-DDI-Workbook-for-Network-Teams-Implementation.doc 6