Common Standards
| Embracing the Common Core: Helping Students Thrive |
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| Wednesday, February 15, 2012 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m Check-in opens at 9:00 a.m. Thomas B. Fordham Institute Greater Columbus Convention Center, Rooms B200-201* 400 N. High Street Columbus, Ohio *On site at the 14th Annual Ohio Educational Technology Conference. |
| This event will be webcast. There is no need to register for the webcast – simply visit our website, www.edexcellence.net, at 9:30 AM on February 15, and watch the proceedings live. |
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QUESTION: When will the new curriculum be implemented in each Sycamore grade?
Source: Supt. A. James, State of the District Address. 9/21/11
Featured Fordham Publication: Now What? Imperatives and Options for Common Core Implementation and Governance
This Fordham Institute publication—co-authored by Chester E. Finn Jr. and Michael J. Petrilli—pushes folks to think about what comes next in the journey to common education standards and tests. Most states have adopted the “Common Core” English language arts and math standards, and most are also working on common assessments. But…now what? The standards won’t implement themselves, but unless they are adopted in the classroom, nothing much will change. What implementation tasks are most urgent? What should be done across state lines? What should be left to individual states, districts, and private markets? Perhaps most perplexing, who will govern and “own” these standards and tests ten or twenty years from now?
After collecting feedback on some tough questions from two-dozen education leaders (e.g. Jeb Bush, David Driscoll, Rod Paige, Andy Rotherham, Eric Smith), Finn and Petrilli frame three possible models for governing this implementation process. In the end, as you’ll see, they recommend a step-by-step approach to coordinate implementation of the Common Core. Read on to find out more.
Revised Academic Content Standards and Model Curriculum Development
In June 2010, the (Ohio) State Board of Education adopted the Common Core State Standards in English language arts and mathematics as well as the revisions to Ohio’s academic content standards in science and social studies. The standards will be effective in 2014-2015 when newly aligned assessments also will be implemented.
ODE continued its work of refining Ohio’s Comprehensive Educational System with the development of a Model Curriculum, which will be a Web-based tool for educators. During the summer and fall of 2010, teachers across Ohio worked collaboratively in teams to suggest instructional strategies and resources that align with the revised standards. The State Board of Education adopted the Model Curriculum on March 15, 2011. Model Curriculum by Grade Level and Course, as well as related information can be found at the links below.
Model Curriculum
English Language Arts Model Curriculum (Web page)
Mathematics Model Curriculum (Web page)
Science Model Curriculum (Web page)
Social Studies Model Curriculum (Web page)
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Suwanee, GA – Today (June 2, 1010) , the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) released a set of state-led education standards, the Common Core State Standards, at…. The English-language arts and mathematics standards for grades K-12 were developed in collaboration with a variety of stakeholders including… The standards establish clear and consistent goals for learning that will prepare America’s children for success in college and work.
The release of the standards marks the conclusion of the development of the Common Core State Standards and signals the start of the adoption and implementation process by the states.
“American competitiveness relies on an education system that can adequately prepare our youth for college and the workforce,” commented Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue. “When American students have the skills and knowledge needed in today’s jobs, our communities will be positioned to compete successfully in the global economy.”
“Strong schools are the surest path to our nation’s long-term economic success. America’s students are now competing with children around the globe for jobs and opportunities after graduation. We need to maintain a national focus to ensure our kids are ready to compete and ready to win. That’s why our nation’s governors committed to this effort to create a common set of high expectations for students across the country.
“The Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents have a roadmap for what they need to do to help them.
… the standards enable schools and teachers to decide how best to help students reach the standards,” said …. “We are entering the most critical phase of the movement for Common Core State Standards. It is now up to states to adopt the standards and carry on the hard work of the educators and community leaders that worked to develop them.”
These standards define the knowledge and skills students should have within their K-12 education careers so that they will graduate high school fully prepared for college and careers. The standards are:
- Aligned with college and work expectations;
- Clear, understandable and consistent;
- Include rigorous content and application of knowledge through high-order skills;
- Build upon strengths and lessons of current state standards;
- Informed by other top performing countries, so that all students are prepared to succeed in our global economy and society; and
- Evidence- and research-based.
In the coming months, each state will follow its own procedures and processes for adoption of the Common Core State Standards. The NGA Center and CCSSO recognize that meaningful and effective implementation of the Common Core State Standards is critical to achieving these goals. To that end, the two organizations are continuing to work closely with a range of partners on how to best support states and districts as they move from adoption to implementation.
To learn more about the Common Core State Standards, please visit corestandards.org.
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First Lens of International Benchmarking report July 2, 2009
Draft IB Report 070209 (1) pdf – Adobe Reader. Ohio Dept. of Education
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The 2007 Global Report Card shows the USA K-12 academic perfomance is far behind 24 other developed nations in language arts, math, and science academic performance.
Creating Effective Classroom Assessments:
Aligning your Assessments (define the purpose of your assessments)
to Standards (in their domain – algebra, geometry, )
to Curriculum (a set of courses and their content)
and Instruction
and Ensuring Item/Test Quality
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“HARD” Chester Finn called the core math standards HARD. Def., “Requiring a lot of effort to do or understand a hard problem.”
“RIGOROUS” Syn., hard Def., very strict and demanding (a rigorous course of study. Precise. Exp. – rigorous enforcement of the rules.
. Lakota schools reduction plan will also shift more time and resources for instruction in science and social studies, as required by upgraded state standards, Mantia said. Source: Lakota may cut 36 more teachers The Enquirer 2/24/12 C3.
. Regardless of what happens to the (NCLB) waiver request, Ohio is revising standardized tests to fit within the Common Core curriculum guidelines being adopted across the country, which are seen as more rigorous. Some districts already have started using the Common Core guidelines, and all must by 2014-15. Source: Ohio seeks exit No Child waiver would help schools The Enquirer 2/23/12 The Enquirer, By Richards and Candisky. The Columbus Dispatch Enquirer Reporter contributed Jessica Brown contributed.
ANNOUNCEMENT
Event: The Future of Math Education in Ohio
High-quality math education has never been more important for our students.
A recent study from Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the workforce finds that over their lifetimes, students who majored in engineering, computer science or business (all math-heavy fields) earned as much as 50 percent more than those who majored in the humanities, the arts, education and psychology. All Ohio students will face more rigorous expectations for math learning as Ohio transitions to the Common Core academic content standards in just a few years – but how can the Buckeye State’s math teachers, curriculum designers, and students adjust? That’s the topic of an exciting discussion next month in Columbus.
Keith Devlin, Stanford University professor, Carl Sagan Prize Winner, and NPR’s “math guy”, will offer a keynote presentation followed by a robust panel discussion featuring David Ferrero, chief STEM advisor for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Brian Boyd, founding principal of the Dayton Regional STEM school; and other state and local math education experts.
The event will be held on Tuesday, February 21 from 11:30 to 2:30(lunch will be provided) at the ESC of Central Ohio.
RSVP to Elaine Organ: Elaine.organ@escco.org by Wednesday, February 15. Space is limited, and the event will be webcast live.
The event is presented free of charge by the ESC of Central Ohio, Nord Family Foundation, Thomas B. Fordham Institute.
. Several states (California and Indiana come
to mind) have had excellent standards on the books
for years, yet haven’t seen many changes in teaching
and learning or in student achievement. Meanwhile,
others—notably Massachusetts—spent the last decade
rocketing ahead of their peers, apparently because they implemented their standards effectively.
.It’s hard to imagine anybody paying attention to the Common Core standards if they aren’t the basis for the tests that drive accountability (for schools, teachers, students, etc.).
.Since there is, in former U.S. Secretary of Education, and Fordham trustee, Rod Paige’s words, “little doubt” that these assessments “will show vast areas of our public education system failing,” it is critical to “protect this centralized and fundamental evaluation system from being subtly, but inevitably, compromised…when that process highlights the warts of the system.”
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Excerpts from Opinion: The Euro and its cousin, the Common Core
By Chester E. Finn, Jr. A Bulletin of Weekly News and Analysis from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute Volume 11, Number 47. December 8, 2011.