State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report Southern Regional Education Board SREB.org One of six benchmarking reports on progress in 15 states
Inside Executive Summary page 1 Introduction page 4 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Timeline and Approach to Standards and Assessments page 8 Common Core-Aligned Teaching Resources page 14 Professional Development page 19 Evaluation of Teachers and Leaders page 23 Accountability page 28 Successes, Challenges and Next Steps: Perspectives from the Field page 33 Implications: Ways to Support Implementation page 37 e SREB State Implementation of Common Core State Standards reports were prepared by Kimberly Anderson, SREB project director, and Mary Elizabeth Mira, SREB research associate, with assistance from Education First. Six individual reports make up the set a summary report, plus five reports with detailed state profiles by topic. Summary Report Timeline and Approach to Standards and Assessments Common Core-Aligned Teaching Resources Professional Development Evaluation of Teachers and Leaders Accountability e data will be updated in a final set of reports in late 2014. is project is supported by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. e conclusions are those of SREB and do not necessarily reflect positions or policies of the funder.
Executive Summary Implementation of college- and career-readiness standards is some of the most important work currently underway in states to improve public education and student achievement. is report provides a summary of findings from SREB s research into the efforts of 15 states 12 in the SREB region to support implementation of the Common Core State Standards. e goal of the research was to document the steps states have taken and to highlight exemplary efforts in order to provide feedback to states to inform their drive for continuous improvement. SREB researchers and consultants reviewed publicly available information on state efforts and conducted extensive interviews with key leaders and educators in each state. is summary report is accompanied by five separate reports that each present detailed profiles of the states efforts in five related areas: Timeline and Approach to Standards and Assessments, Common Core-Aligned Teaching Resources, Professional Development, Evaluation of Teachers and Leaders and Accountability. is Executive Summary presents a synopsis of the findings for each of the five topic areas states need to move their work forward. Timeline and Approach to Standards and Assessments The study considered the state s leadership for reform, the structures and initiatives it put in place to support implementation in districts and schools, whether assessments are aligned to the Common Core and whether the Common Core is also integrated into teaching and assessment for students with severe cognitive disabilities and English learners. (Note: The information provided in this report about the alignment of state assessments to the Common Core is based on information available publicly at the time of publication and is self-reported by the states and test developers.) In all the participating 15 states, the Common Core standards are being taught in classrooms as of the 2013-14 school year. Seven of the states currently administer assessments that they report are fully aligned to the Common Core. Eight states report that in 2014-15 they intend to adopt the fully aligned assessments of either the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) or the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced). All 15 states are working to lead and support implementation in their schools and districts. Leading states are Kentucky and New York, with the most comprehensive and innovative efforts. Other strong states are Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland and North Carolina. Common Core-Aligned Teaching Resources The study examined the Common Core-aligned instructional resources and materials that states make available to educators, considering the types and amounts of tools provided, the criteria and processes states use to select and develop these tools, and the training and support they provide local educators in selecting and designing their own. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 1
All 15 states provide educators with online, on-demand access to at least some instructional resources and materials that are aligned to the Common Core, and they are all working to foster educators use and development of high-quality, aligned tools. Leading states, with the most comprehensive array of resources and materials and the most extensive efforts, are Colorado, Georgia, Maryland and New York. Other strong states are Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Tennessee. Professional Development The study examined how states provided initial training for local teachers and leaders to prepare them to implement the Common Core; the ongoing collaboration and assistance they offer to support local efforts long-term; and the supplementary online resources that they make available. All 15 states provided educators with some type of initial training on the new standards, and they all offer, whether themselves or in collaboration with entities such as regional centers, some type of ongoing professional learning to support teachers and leaders. Leading states are Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland and Tennessee, with the most comprehensive training and the deepest levels of support for and collaboration with local teachers, leaders, districts and schools. Other strong states are Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, New York and North Carolina. Evaluation of Teachers and Leaders The study examined the extent to which states teacher and leader evaluation systems incorporate measures aligned to the Common Core. As of 2012, all 15 states had started implementing new or revised teacher and leader evaluation systems. Leading states overall in alignment of both their teacher and leader evaluation systems are Colorado, Louisiana and Tennessee. ese states have developed or updated their professional teacher and leadership standards, classroom observation rubrics and leadership criteria to more closely align to the new standards. ese states also support extensive use of evaluation data to drive continuous improvement. z States showing strong alignment of their teacher evaluation systems to the Common Core are Colorado, Louisiana, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. z States showing strong alignment of their leader evaluation systems to the Common Core are Colorado, Louisiana and Tennessee. Additional states with strong efforts in the use of evaluation data for improvement are Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, North Carolina and West Virginia. 2 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report
Accountability The study examined the measures states use to hold schools accountable for student learning of the Common Core within their general statewide accountability systems and their accountability reporting for the use of federal Title III funds to serve English learners. In their general statewide accountability systems, all 15 states have at least some annual, summative English language arts and math grade-level and course assessments that they report are or soon will be aligned to the Common Core. For state Title III accountability reporting, a majority of the states use results from English language proficiency assessments for English learners that the state or test developer reports are aligned. Leading states are Georgia, Kentucky and North Carolina. ese states have the most extensive set of aligned measures in their general statewide accountability systems annual, summative assessments, multiple college and career readiness measures, and other kinds of measures. For Title III accountability reporting, they use English language proficiency assessments that the test developer reports are aligned. Other strong states are Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Implications: How to Support State Implementation of the Common Core Based on these findings and on interviewees reflections on their work, here are the kinds of supports that legislatures, policy-makers and others can provide to strengthen states efforts to lead and support local implementation of the Common Core. Support state efforts over the long-term. State, district and school leaders need steady funding and policy support from their legislatures, state leaders and other partners. Support the continued development of aligned instructional resources and materials. Educators need access to more aligned instructional tools and further training in how to select and design their own. States have made the most progress in developing resources and materials for English language arts and math. Fewer resources and materieals are available for working with English learners, students with disabilities and struggling learners, and for addressing the Common Core literacy standards for history/social studies, science, and technical subjects in grades six through 12. Facilitate more collaboration across states. State leaders and educators in the field benefit when they can work together, share with each other and learn from leading efforts. Deepen educator understanding of what Common Core instruction is and how to identify it in action. Teachers, leaders and evaluators need more classroom observation guides and leadership rubrics that are explicitly aligned to the Common Core. Teachers need videos showing effective Common Corebased teaching and learning and models of exemplary student work. Parents and the public need a better understanding of what the standards are and what changes they bring for students and schools. Support the use of data and evaluation. Schools, districts and state departments of education need to further develop structures and capacities for analyzing data and evaluating implementation as part of their ongoing work. External studies of reform also provide valuable perspectives on how the work is going and how it can be improved. Support state departments of education as they navigate their roles in this era of reform. Many states find that they need to increase the capacity of their staff in key areas for reform, reorganize staff or increase their staff to meet emerging needs. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 3
Introduction Implementation of college- and career-readiness standards is some of the most important work currently underway in states to improve public education and student achievement. Fourteen SREB states have adopted the Common Core State Standards. Two SREB states, Texas and Virginia, have adopted their own college- and career-ready standards. This report and the accompanying detailed reports with state-by-state profiles provide windows into the efforts to-date of 15 states 12 in the SREB region to support implementation of the Common Core. is includes an examination of their efforts in five related areas: 1. Timeline and Approach to Standards and Assessments 2. Common Core-Aligned Teaching Resources 3. Professional Development 4. Evaluation of Teachers and Leaders 5. Accountability is Summary Report includes: Descriptions of trends across the 15 states in Common Core implementation activities Highlights from states with leading efforts Successes and challenges states are encountering, next steps they anticipate, and support they need to move the work forward Perspectives from the field, gathered through interviews with key leaders and educators is report and the accompanying detailed reports with state-by-state profiles can be accessed at SREB.org/1600. SREB prepared these publications as part of its Benchmarking State Implementation of Common Core State Standards project, which builds on SREB s history of supporting states through tracking and reporting on state implementation of key policies and initiatives. ese reports provide state education leaders and policy-makers with actionable feedback on their efforts, and they provide a forum for discussion and collaboration that can inform future efforts both within and across states. ey also establish a baseline for SREB s ongoing tracking and reporting. Fifteen states participated in this project. SREB states Alabama Georgia Maryland South Carolina Delaware Kentucky Mississippi Tennessee Florida Louisiana North Carolina West Virginia States outside the SREB region Colorado New York Pennsylvania 4 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report
Methodology A team of SREB researchers and consultants gathered information for these reports from two sources: Review of publicly available information such as state policy documents and reports, state department of education websites, and other sources such as U.S. Department of Education reports Interviews with state department leaders, members of state boards of education, governors staff, legislators, teachers, principals, district superintendents, unions and leaders in business and community organizations e information reflects state efforts between 2010, when these 15 states adopted the Common Core, and fall 2013. The Common Core State Standards Impetus e Common Core State Standards are a response to key challenges that emerged as part of states work over the last 20 years to set expectations for what students should know and be able to do; to measure student attainment of these expectations; and to improve education systems within increasingly competitive national and global economic contexts. e No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) required states to adopt student learning standards for English language arts and mathematics but left it to each state to develop those The Common Core State Standards (Common Core) are a response to key challenges that emerged as part of states work over the last 20 years. standards. NCLB also required states to use assessments to measure student progress on their standards, but each state developed its own and set its own levels of achievement required to demonstrate proficiency. is resulted in substantial variation across the states in the knowledge and skills deemed necessary for students and the levels of mastery they had to demonstrate to be considered proficient. Even when students scored well on their own states assessments, far too many scored below Basic on the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP), a test that is considered to be the Nation s Report Card and that allows comparison of results across states. And more than a third of high school graduates entering colleges and universities were underprepared for the rigors of postsecondary work and were required to take remedial courses. is jeopardized their persistence in college and increased the cost of their education and their time to degree completion. Further, students in the United States have performed well below peers from other countries on international assessments over the last two decades, hampering states efforts to build globally competitive workforces and economies. In recent years, the call for more rigorous student learning standards was a call for an improved workforce for the future. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 5
Development e Common Core State Standards Initiative was launched in 2009 (see www.corestandards.org/). It was led by the nation s governors and state education superintendents, through the National Governors Association (NGA) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). e purpose of the Initiative was to develop a set of expectations for what students should know and be able to do at each grade level and by the time they graduate from high school, to prepare students for their next steps in the workforce, the military, a university or a community college. Committees of educators and subject-matter experts developed the standards, incorporating extensive feedback from state officials, scholars, assessment developers, professional organizations, educators, parents, students and the public. e standards were developed to be: Aligned with college and work expectations Fewer, clearer and more rigorous than most states previous standards Built on the experience of and best work from previous state standards Internationally benchmarked, so that all students are prepared to succeed in the global economy and society Based on evidence and research Released in June 2010, the Common Core includes standards for English language arts and math grades K through 12 and for literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects in grades six through 12. e standards are distinct from curricula. ey are a basis on which curricula can be built. Adoption e standards are adopted voluntarily by states. In adopting the Common Core, states agree to adopt the full set standards, though they can customize them by adding up to an additional 15 percent of state-specific standards to comply with a state mandate to teach a certain concept or skill, for example, or to include knowledge or skills that local stakeholders feel are essential for students. To date, 45 states, the District of Columbia, four territories and the Department of Defense Education Activity (whose schools serve the children of military families stationed on bases in the United States and around the world) have adopted the Common Core. Adoption by such a large number of states provides a consistent set of high expectations for students, regardless of where they live, a benefit for military families and others who with high rates of mobility during their children s school careers. Adoption by such a large number of states provides a consistent set of high expectations for students, regardless of where they live. e 15 states in this study all adopted the standards, and some adopted them and then renamed or customized them to meet the needs of the state. For example, in Alabama the Common Core are called the College and Career Ready Standards and in Pennsylvania they are called the Pennsylvania Core Standards (PCS). In the accompanying reports with state-by-state profiles, each state s profile refers to the standards in a way that conveys how they are named in that state. For example, the Pennsylvania profiles reference the Common Core/PCS. In this Summary Report the standards for all of the states are simply referred to as the Common Core, to maintain consistency and ease of reading; one exception is in the descriptions of leading state efforts, where those states names for the standards are used. 6 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report
State-Level Leadership and Reform Context States are implementing the Common Core within a complex and dynamic education policy and reform landscape. In all 15 states in this study, other major, concurrent reforms intersect with the Common Core. Many states organized themselves into consortia to develop assessments to measure student learning of the Common Core in English language arts and math. e U.S. Department of Education funded two In all 15 states in this study, other major, concurrent reforms intersect with the Common Core. consortia to support states in this development: Smarter Balanced (http://www.smarterbalanced.org/) and PARCC. e promise of the Smarter Balanced and PARCC assessments is to provide students, parents, teachers, the public and policy-makers with results that clearly reflect how well students are meeting grade-level standards that lead to college- and career-readiness expectations and that are comparable across states. e Race to the Top grant program and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act accountability waivers, generally known as NCLB waivers, also support state efforts to implement new standards, assessments and related reforms. In 2010 states first competed for $4.3 billion in Race to the Top grants, and 11 states in this study won grants. Race to the Top did not require states to adopt the Common Core. It did require states to adopt college-readiness standards and assessments, which could be the Common Core or other standards certified as college-ready by institutions of higher education in that state. States adopting the Common Core did have a competitive advantage in the application process; however, though subsequent surveys of state officials have suggested that while this incentive influenced states timeline for adopting the Common Core, it did not impact their decision to adopt. Race to the Top states also committed to developing enhanced data systems to improve instruction and to intensifying efforts to turn around the lowest-performing schools. Since 2012, all 15 states in this study have received waivers of certain provisions of NCLB. States received waivers if they agreed to redesign their statewide accountability system and adopt college- and careerreadiness standards and assessments along with alternate assessments for students with severe cognitive disabilities and aligned English language proficiency standards and assessments for English learners. rough both the Race to the Top and NCLB waiver programs, states also commit to developing and implementing educator effectiveness systems that incorporate the use of student performance information such as test scores. State leaders are working thoughtfully and diligently to integrate implementation of the Common Core with these other complex, high-stakes initiatives. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 7
Timeline and Approach to Standards and Assessments What basic decisions and actions are state education policy-makers at state departments of education, in particular taking to foster successful statewide implementation of the new standards and aligned assessments? SREB researchers and consultants reviewed each state s efforts to establish implementation timelines, align student assessments, support local educators as they put the standards into practice, and integrate the Common Core into teaching and learning for diverse learners. All 15 states are undertaking comprehensive efforts to lead and support successful implementation of the Common Core and aligned assessments. Based on the following criteria, some states stand out as leaders in their approaches. Leadership and reform context: State-level leaders and other concurrent statewide reforms support the adoption and implementation of the Common Core. Assessments: Assessments are fully aligned to the Common Core. Support for implementation: Strong structures and routines enable the department to support implementation through extensive collaboration with local educators. Reaching diverse learners: e Common Core is being integrated into the teaching, learning and assessment efforts for all students including students with severe cognitive disabilities and English learners. All 15 states are undertaking comprehensive efforts to lead and support implementation of the Common Core. In leading states, leaders and other concurrent reforms support the adoption and implementation of the standards, assessments are aligned, the state Department of Education supports implementation through extensive collaboration with local educators, and the Common Core is integrated into teaching, learning and assessment for all students including students with severe cognitive disabilities and English learners. Leading States: Kentucky and New York have the most comprehensive, coordinated and innovative efforts. Other states with strong efforts are Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland and North Carolina. Trends Across the States Trends across the states are summarized here. Additional information for each state can be found in the accompanying report, Timeline and Approach to Standards and Assessments. Leadership and Reform Context: How do state leaders and other concurrent statewide reforms support states in their adoption and implementation of the Common Core? 8 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report
Across the 15 states, various forces were in play to support adoption and implementation of the Common Core and aligned assessments: related policy work, programmatic initiatives, legislation, and collaboration with educators across the state and leaders from other sectors. In many states, other large education initiatives were in place at the time of and preceding adoption of the Common Core. For example, several states had ongoing policy work such as participation in Achieve s American Diploma Project. In some, statewide education task forces or commissions supported the adoption of new college- and career-readiness standards and assessments. In most states, the state department of education worked with leaders in other sectors higher education, business, the executive branch, the legislature, education leadership commissions, other state agencies and with input from educators across the state to develop Common Core implementation plans and approaches. e U.S. Department of Education awarded 11 states with Race to the Top grants, which required adoption of college- and career-readiness standards and assessments and related reforms. Race to the Top funds have been a major funding source for Common Core-related initiatives in Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Tennessee. ree states enacted legislation that either spurred or supported the state s adoption of the Common Core (Kentucky in 2009, Colorado in 2008 and South Carolina in 2005). In three states, legislation was enacted that built upon the state s adoption of the Common Core, requiring further college- and career-readiness reforms (Florida in 2011 and Maryland and West Virginia in 2013). Standards: What are the states timelines for implementation of the new standards in classrooms? In all 15 states, the Common Core standards are being taught in classrooms as of the 2013-14 school year. Kentucky established the earliest start date, beginning in 2010-11. e last states to begin, in 2013-14, were Maryland, Pennsylvania and South Carolina. Some states began implementation of all of the standards at one time while others phased in implementation, by grade level, for example, over two or more years. ree states have rollout timelines that extend into 2014-15: West Virginia, Florida and Georgia. In all 15 states, the Common Core standards are being taught in classrooms as of the 2013-14 school year. Some of the states adopted the Common Core standards and then customized them to meet the needs of the state (adopting states can add up to an additional 15 percent of state-specific standards). In the accompanying detailed reports, each state profile refers to the standards in a way that conveys how they are named in that state. For example the Pennsylvania profiles reference the Common Core/Pennsylvania Core Standards (PCS). e Alabama profiles refer to the Common Core/College and Career Ready Standards (CCRS). In this report the standards for all of the states are simply referred to as the Common Core to maintain consistency and ease of reading; one exception is in the descriptions of leading state efforts where those states names for the standards are used. Assessments: How are states ensuring that their assessments are aligned to the new standards? After adopting the Common Core, states began work to ensure that their assessments measure student learning of the Common Core. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 9
Alignment The states in this study are currently administering assessments that are at various stages of alignment to the Common Core. All 15 states report plans to fully align their assessments to the new standards by 2014-15. All 15 states are or were at some point involved with the work of one or both of the assessment consortia, PARCC and Smarter Balanced. However, the assessment landscape is dynamic, and some states have changed course; how some states plan to achieve alignment is still fluid. e information in this report about the alignment of state assessments to the Common Core is based on information available publicly at the time of publication and is self-reported by the states and test developers. At the time of publication, All 15 states report plans to fully align their assessments to the new standards by 2014-15. Fully aligned. Seven states currently administer assessments that they report are fully aligned to the Common Core: Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, New York, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Partially aligned. Four states currently administer assessments that they report are partially aligned to the Common Core: Colorado, Delaware, South Carolina and Tennessee. ese states have modified their state assessments in some way to align them more closely to the Common Core. Not aligned. Four states currently administer assessments that they report are not aligned to the Common Core: Florida, Maryland, Mississippi and West Virginia. ese states have not modified their state assessments to address the new standards. PARCC or Smarter Balanced. Eight of the participating 15 states report that they intend to adopt the fully aligned PARCC or Smarter Balanced assessments in 2014-15: Colorado, Delaware, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia. Technology readiness Assessment technology is a major challenge for some states as they prepare to implement the new assessments. PARCC, Smarter Balanced and other assessment developers are designing their assessments to be administered online. All 15 of the state departments of education are working with districts to assess their readiness for online testing and to address their needs. Many states recognize that not all of their districts will have the necessary assessment technology infrastructure in place by 2014-15. Some states are better prepared than others, as they have been using or phasing in online testing already. ese states include Delaware, Florida, Georgia and Kentucky. Given steep challenges in most states, however, some are exploring the option of using paper-and-pencil versions of the new tests for the first few years to allow more time for districts to prepare. Tennessee and West Virginia took noteworthy approaches to supporting districts as they prepare: In 2013 the Tennessee legislature provided extra state funds to help districts augment their technology infrastructure. In West Virginia, through collaboration between the department, the state board of education and the legislature, a two-year moratorium was established on spending state funding for new textbooks and materials. In 2011-12 and 2012-13, districts could use those funds instead to upgrade their technology systems and digital resources. As 2014-15 approaches, the pressure increases for all states and districts to work together to enhance assessment technology infrastructures. 10 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report
Supporting implementation: What are the main structures and supports that the department has in place to support local implementation of the new standards and assessments? All 15 states are undertaking comprehensive efforts to lead and support successful implementation of the Common Core across their states. All of the state departments of education provide professional learning for educators. Whether designed and delivered themselves or in partnership with entities such as regional centers, all states provided some initial training to help local educators learn about the new standards and prepare for implementation. States also continue to provide training and support of various types to help educators implement the reforms in the long term. States efforts to provide ongoing professional learning and support vary, however, regarding their extent and how they are coordinated. ey vary in whether and how systematically they work with district and school teams and teacher leaders. ey vary in how extensively they facilitate collaboration across levels of the system to integrate the work of the state, regional entities, districts, schools and teachers. Some state departments have seen their roles in reform shift and expand, as they respond to unprecedented requests from districts and schools for training, support and aligned teaching resources. All of the state departments of education also provide educators with access to online, on-demand instructional resources and materials that are aligned to the new standards. States efforts vary with regard to the extent of offerings. Efforts of leading states include tools to support educators in learning about the standards, comprehensive sets of model instructional plans, extensive assessment resources and other types of materials. Reaching diverse learners: How are states ensuring that the Common Core is integrated into the teaching, learning and assessment efforts for all students, in particular for students with severe cognitive disabilities and English learners? e Common Core places higher demands on students than most previous state standards. e higher demands are particularly challenging for English learners and students with disabilities, two historically lowachieving groups for whom educators have struggled to increase achievement. For students with severe cognitive disabilities (those unable to participate in general state assessments, even with appropriate accommodations), states are working to ensure that teaching and learning are supported by alternate English language arts and math standards and assessments that align to the rigorous demands of the Common Core. States vary as to whether they have aligned their current alternate standards and assessments. Looking toward the future, five of the states report that they either may or will use their own aligned alternate standards and assessments: Alabama, Colorado, Kentucky, New York and Pennsylvania. Two federally funded consortia are developing alternate assessments that are aligned to the Common Core and cohesive with the PARCC and Smarter Balanced systems. Ten of the states in this study have joined one of these, though not all confirm decisions to utilize the consortium s resources: Nine states are working with the National Center and State Collaborative (NCSC, http://www. ncscpartners.org/): Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Tennessee. Four states are working with the Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM, http://dynamiclearningmaps.org/): Colorado, Mississippi, North Carolina and West Virginia. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 11
For English learners, in addition to requiring that they be taught the Common Core in the content areas, states are working to ensure that teaching and learning for them is supported by English language proficiency standards and assessments that incorporate the rigorous linguistic demands inherent in the Common Core. Nine of the states in this study are members of the World Class Instructional Design and Assessment Consortium, WIDA (http://www.wida.us/index.aspx): Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. ese states use WIDA s ELP standards and assessments, which WIDA reports are aligned to the Common Core. Four of the states are members of the English Language Proficiency for the 21st Century Consortium (ELPA21, http://www.ccsso.org/resources/programs/elpa21.html), a federally funded consortium: Florida, Louisiana, South Carolina and West Virginia. (South Carolina reports that it has not finalized a decision to utilize the ELPA21 resources.) ELPA21 s English language proficiency standards and assessments are scheduled to be ready for states in 2016-17. New York reports that it has aligned its own English language proficiency standards and is in the process of aligning its assessment. Tennessee reports that its plans are currently in development. Highlights from Leading States Kentucky Kentucky s 2009 Senate Bill 1 mandated a new public education assessment and accountability system for 2011-12. is led to Kentucky becoming the first state in the nation to adopt the Common Core, called the Kentucky Core Academic Standards, or KCAS. Kentucky was also the first state to develop and administer summative statewide assessments in English language arts and math that the state reports are fully aligned to the Common Core/KCAS. Kentucky s Common Core/KCAS reform is supported in part by a Race to the Top grant. e department provides aggressive training and ongoing support to local leaders who then lead the reform. A structure of interlocking leadership networks is built upon District Leadership Teams. e District Leadership Teams collaborate with the department, regional educational cooperatives and higher education institutions to receive training, develop district and school implementation plans, and redeliver professional development to local colleagues. District Leadership Team members also participate in role-specific support networks: an Instructional Support Leadership and Superintendents Network for school and district leaders; a Leadership Network for English language arts and math teachers; and a Leadership Network for Science and Social Studies teachers in grades six through 12. Higher Education Networks and Early Learning Leadership Networks facilitate coordination of K-12 reforms with efforts in pre-k through higher education. e department offers a strong set of online, on-demand resources and materials for educators on its Continuous Instructional Improvement Technology System Web portal (http://education.ky.gov/curriculum/ ciits/pages/default.aspx). To support English learners as they work to master the rigorous linguistic demands inherent in the new standards, Kentucky has English language proficiency standards and assessments in place that it reports are aligned to the Common Core. 12 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report
New York New York s implementation of the Common Core (called the Common Core Learning Standards, or CCLS) is based within the state s comprehensive Regents Reform Agenda. e Regents Reform Agenda aims to further college and career readiness for all students through new standards and assessments, data-driven instruction and a new teacher and leader effectiveness system. is reform is supported in part by a Race to the Top grant. e state department of education created Network Teams of educators and experts who work directly with districts and schools to provide professional learning and support implementation planning, local curriculum development and integration of the Common Core/CCLS with other major reform initiatives. New York already has summative, statewide English language arts and math assessments that it reports are fully aligned to the new standards for grades three through eight, and it has begun aligning its high school Regents Exams to the new standards. e department s EngageNY website (http://www.engageny.org/) provides an extensive array of tools to help educators implement the new standards, and it has become a popular resource for other state departments of education and teachers across the nation. To support students with severe cognitive disabilities, New York has alternate standards and assessments in place that it reports are aligned to the Common Core/CCLS. To support English learners as they work to master the rigorous linguistic demands inherent in the new standards, New York has developed English language proficiency standards that it reports are aligned to the Common Core/CCLS, and the state is aligning its English language proficiency assessment. Further, to address the needs of English learners in bilingual settings, through its Bilingual Common Core Initiative the department developed a set of Common Core/CCLSaligned standards for English language arts in bilingual classrooms, called Home Language Arts Progressions for grades pre K-12. e department is developing instructional resources to complement these progressions in the five most common native languages in the state. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 13
Common Core-Aligned Teaching Resources How are state departments of education facilitating local educators use of classroom materials that are aligned to the Common Core? Many interviewees shared that, from the beginning of the reform effort to the present, a major challenge for classroom implementation is a lack of aligned textbooks and other instructional resources and materials. erefore, this is a very important type of support for states to offer educators. What does it mean for instructional resources or materials to be aligned to the Common Core? ey need to provide coherent and accurate information about the standards, clearly articulating the knowledge and skills contained within the standards and how these differ from the state s previous standards. ey need to offer guidance for educators on designing teaching and learning experiences that reach the increased levels of rigor required by the new standards. SREB researchers and consultants reviewed each state s efforts to develop instructional resources and materials to ensure their quality and alignment to the new standards and to help local educators design and select their own high-quality, aligned tools. e resources and materials in this report were provided by states as supplementary supports that educators can use on a voluntary basis; they are not a required curriculum. All 15 states in this study are working to foster the use of high-quality instructional resources and materials aligned to the Common Core. Based on the following criteria, some states stand out as leaders in their approaches. Extensive resources. e department provides educators with online, on-demand access to an extensive set of vetted, Common Core-aligned instructional resources and materials. z Tools for the main Common Core content areas of English language arts and math K-12, as well as for the Common Core literacy standards in history/social science, science and technical subjects for grades six through 12 z A wide variety of resources and materials such as basic guidance materials, curriculum development tools, sample instructional plans, strategies for differentiating instruction for diverse learners, formative assessment resources and videos that show high-quality instruction All 15 states in this study are working to foster the use of high-quality instructional resources and materials aligned to the Common Core. In leading states, the department of education provides an extensive array of aligned tools. The department uses a formal vetting process and criteria to determine the quality and alignment of the tools it makes available. And the department provides training for local educators on how to design and select their own high-quality, aligned resources and materials. Formal process and criteria. e department has a formal vetting process and set of criteria in place for determining the quality and extent of alignment of the resources and materials it provides. Empowered educators. e department provides training and support for local educators on how to design and select their own high-quality, aligned resources and materials. 14 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report
Leading states, with the most comprehensive array of resources and materials and most extensive efforts, are Colorado, Georgia, Maryland and New York. Other states with strong efforts are Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Tennessee. Trends Across the States Trends across the states are summarized here. Additional information for each state is in the accompanying report, Common Core-Aligned Teaching Resources. Location: Where are the state-provided resources and materials housed? To meet educators needs for access to on-demand, online, aligned instructional resources and materials, each state has either a dedicated website or pages on the department s website where the tools are housed. A few of the states also use wikis as an additional mode of sharing. Types of resources: What types of aligned instructional resources and materials do the states make available online? All 15 states in this study are working to provide educators with quality, Common Core-aligned instructional resources and materials. All 15 states offer the following, to varying extents: Information about the standards and explanations of the instructional shifts required Guidance for designing curriculum and planning instruction Sample instructional plans such as model lessons or units Information about state assessments Notable examples of this work are: e leading states offer an extensive array of tools, including sample instructional plans that address all of the standards for an entire school year for all grade levels in English language arts and math: Colorado, Georgia, Maryland and New York. Seven other states offer a wide array of tools: Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Tennessee. ese states have large, searchable repositories of sample instructional plans including lesson and unit plans. ese plans address key standards for each grade level in English language arts and math K-12 and include basic instructional strategies as well as strategies for differentiating instruction for diverse learners, formative assessment tasks and other classroom resources. Colorado and Maryland have the strongest sets of plans that address the Common Core literacy standards in history/social science, science and technical subjects for grades six through 12. Maryland and New York have the most robust set of resources to help teachers differentiate instruction for diverse learners in particular, for English learners, bilingual students and struggling learners. While all 15 states have or are developing or acquiring some formative assessment tools for classroom use, six states have particularly strong resources already available: Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, New York, Tennessee and West Virginia. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 15
ree states offer large collections of models of Common Core-based teaching and learning in action. Louisiana and New York have videos of exemplary instruction in classrooms; Kentucky and New York offer samples of student work resulting from Common Core-based learning. Although most of the states have built extensive sets of tools for educators, they are not resting. Development efforts are ongoing, with new resources and materials being added regularly in many states. Development process: How are the aligned instructional resources and materials that the departments make available developed? In 13 of the states in this study, the department develops the tools, often in conjunction with local educators. Many of the states involve large numbers of teachers in structured development processes that include professional learning. Many also involve other partners such as higher education colleagues, content experts, and organizations like Achieve, SEDL and Student Achievement Partners. In Colorado and Florida, the department acts more as a convener, providing guidance, professional learning and facilitation of the development processes for local educators. Local educators then develop the resources and materials the state posts in its archive. Alignment: How does the department support the statewide use of instructional resources and materials that are high-quality and aligned to the Common Core? Validating alignment of state-provided materials To ensure that only high-quality and aligned instructional resources are posted on the state archives, all 15 of the state departments of education in this study have adopted or are developing criteria for quality and alignment to the standards and a formal review process to vet items. e most common tools used by states in their reviews are the Tri-State Rubrics, developed by Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island with facilitation by Achieve, and the Literacy Design Collaborative and Math Design Collaborative frameworks. ree states have particularly thorough review criteria and processes that are articulated in guidebooks or on dedicated websites, and their review processes are conducted entirely online: Florida, Kentucky and Pennsylvania. Empowering educators to select and develop aligned tools Many states involve local educators in developing the aligned resources and materials for the state repository. Nine states provide robust training for educators as part of this process: Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, North Carolina and Tennessee. Most commonly, educators receive training as part of their district or school leadership teams. Five states also offer strong teacher-level training outside a team structure: Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Florida and Louisiana. Textbooks Most states play modest roles in the review and adoption process for textbooks and other instructional materials that are selected at the local level. A few states have no role in local review and adoption processes. In many states, a state-level committee or panel reviews products submitted by vendors and produces a list of recommended or approved products. However, districts may purchase materials whether or not they are on a state list. In nine states, the state-level review committees or panels have access to the Publishers Criteria for the Common Core State Standards as part of their review process, or the department shares the Publishers Criteria with local decision-makers. ese states are Delaware, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, 16 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report
North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia. e Publishers Criteria is a materials alignment guide developed by the authors of the Common Core in collaboration with partner organizations, experts and educators. (See http://www.corestandards.org/resources.) Louisiana has a notable process in place to support the local selection of Common Core-aligned textbooks. Historically, the department conducts a review of publisher materials and provides its findings to districts to support their selection process, though districts do not have to purchase from the state-approved list. In 2013-14, to better help districts identify Common Core-aligned products, the department created an additional, informal, rolling review process to broaden the set of resources reviewed and to provide ongoing guidance as new materials are submitted. Reviews result in three-tiered ratings of the products, from full Common Core alignment to partial alignment to a lack of any quality alignment. (See http://www.louisianabelieves.com/ academics/2013-2014-math-and-english-language-arts-instructional-materials-review.) Highlights from Leading States Colorado To foster the use of instructional resources and materials that are aligned to the Common Core (adopted as the Colorado Academic Standards, or CAS), the state department of education has three major initiatives. e first is the District Sample Curriculum Project, with the goal of generating a statewide resource bank of aligned instructional resources and materials. In 2012-13 over 500 educators participated voluntarily in the department s professional learning on the new standards and training on how to develop aligned instructional unit plans. ese educators developed over 670 sample unit overviews for English language arts, math and literacy in history/social studies, science, technical subjects and other content areas for grades K-12. e overviews provide teachers with a year at a glance, with all of the standards incorporated, as well as approaches to teaching and learning, strategies for differentiating instruction, classroom resources and formative assessment tasks. During 2013-14, department staff are working with volunteer district teams as they build out lesson plans based on the unit overviews. e second initiative is the Content Collaboratives, with goals of building a statewide resource bank of high-quality formative and summative assessment tools aligned to the Common Core/CAS and building teachers assessment literacy. In 2012 the department convened volunteer K-12 educators from across the state along with assessment experts. Participants reviewed available assessments from vendors, districts, and other sources and identified those that exemplify high quality and alignment to the standards. Over 300 have been identified and loaded into the department s online assessment bank. Next, the department and the Center for Educational Testing and Evaluation at the University of Kansas trained the teachers on how to develop their own Common Core/CAS-aligned performance assessments. e third phase of the work, beginning in 2014, integrates this assessment work with the continuing work of the District Sample Curriculum Project. Content Collaboratives members will lend assessment expertise to the design of instructional plans. e third initiative is Colorado s district-based Literacy Design Collaborative and Math Design Collaborative integration initiative. e project is a partnership among the selected districts, the department, the Colorado Legacy Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. e goal is to support teachers in developing rigorous, standards-aligned learning experiences that integrate literacy skills throughout the academic disciplines and that increase student achievement in math. Colorado plans to identify effective practices using the project tools and bring the efforts to scale across the state. State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report 17
See Colorado s resources on the department s website for standards and instructional support (http://www.cde. state.co.us/standardsandinstruction) and on the enetcolorado website (http://www.enetcolorado.org/). Georgia To foster the use of instructional resources and materials aligned to the Common Core (adopted as the College and Career Georgia Performance Standards, or CCGPS), the department collaborated with educators, experts and partner entities across the state to develop model unit frameworks for both English language arts and math for all grades K-12. ese frameworks include the standards, essential questions, concepts and skills, strategies for teaching and differentiating instruction, and formative assessment tasks. e frameworks cover an entire year of instruction, addressing all the standards for each grade level. Additionally, the department is working with Achieve on training for district English language arts and math content specialists statewide on how to design and select aligned instructional resources and materials. ese specialists will then be able to share this training with local teachers. Also, in collaboration with the Georgia Association of Curriculum and Instructional Specialists and the state s Regional Education Service Agencies, the department provides Literacy Design Collaborative and Math Design Collaborative training for districts. So far more than 150 districts have participated, and training is expanding to educators across the state on a voluntary basis in 2013-14. Georgia also provides teachers a robust archive of aligned classroom assessment resources with more than 1,600 aligned formative assessment items. Benchmark assessments are under development. See Georgia s resources website (www.georgiastandards.org) and the Teacher Resource Link (www.gadoe.org/ Technology-Services/SLDS/Pages/Teacher-Resource-Link.aspx). 18 State Implementation of Common Core State Standards Summary Report