Integrating the Common
Core into CTE programs
https://sites.google.com/site/cteccss/
Beth Ratway
Senior Consultant
bratway@air.org
June 2014
Copyright © 20XX American Institutes for Research. All rights reserved.
Welcome and Introductions
Please let me know who you are, one thing
you are currently doing with the CCSS
Copyright © 2014 American Institutes for Research. All rights reserved.
Outcomes
The intended outcomes for meeting participants are as
follows:
• Gain a greater understanding of the Common Core State Standards as part of
College and Career Readiness
• Become aware of what is needed to integrate the Common Core Standards into
CTE work
• Identify research, resources, and tools to help align CTE to the Common Core
State Standards
• Explore tools that will help with integrating the work.
• Share strategies and ideas for integration
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What do you want to learn
more about?
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Add polleverywhere here
https://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/k73x
mt9x5r0yYnx
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Setting the Stage
College and Career Readiness and the
Common Core
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College and Career Readiness
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College and Career Readiness
• Create a visual or mind map describing what College and
Career Readiness means to you?
• Highlight where your current work intersects.
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Research and Ideas Summaries from:
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Creating A System for Change
The system improves college and career readiness
by
 Defining readiness
 Examining schools and students
 Aligning the instructional programs
 Strengthening partnerships between high schools
businesses and colleges.
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Defining Readiness
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College Readiness and Career
Readiness: Same or Different?
• EPIC’s research on the content of courses in two-year
certificate programs is identifying the overlap between college
readiness and career readiness knowledge and skills.
• Necessary academic content knowledge varies among in twoyear certificate programs and between certificate programs
and general education courses at four-year institutions.
• However, almost all certificates require a strong academic
foundation, and students in certificate programs need strong
skills in the area of Academic Behaviors
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A More Complete
Definition of “Ready”
The definition of “ready” is a student who can succeed—
without remediation—in credit-bearing general education
courses or a two-year associates or certificate program that
leads to a career in the Occupational Information Network
Standard (O-NET ) job zone 3 classification.
David Conley EPIC
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The Four Dimensions of Readiness
Contextual Skills and
Awareness
Academic
Behaviors
Key Content
Knowledge
Common
Core
Key Cognitive
Strategies
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David Conley - EPIC
The Four Dimensions of Readiness
Key Cognitive Strategies (THINK)
• Problem formulation, research,
• interpretation, communication,
precision and accuracy.
Key Content Knowledge (KNOW)
• Key foundational content and
“big ideas” from core subjects.
Academic Behaviors (ACT)
• Self-management skills:
time management, study skills,
goal setting, self-awareness,
and persistence.
Transition Skills (College/Workforce Knowledge) (GO)
• Admissions requirements, college types and missions, affording college, college culture,
and relations with professors. Understanding the context/environment
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Get a summary at Conley, David. (2008). What makes a student college ready?
Educational Leadership. October. Vol 66 No. 2
Some Example Recommendations
• Key Content Knowledge:
• Increase dual enrollment, AP, IB
• Key Cognitive Strategies:
• Consider “senior seminars” where students are exposed to assignments that
require cognitive strategies
• Academic Behaviors:
• Provide resources for students to learn time management, study skills, goal
setting
• Contextual/Transition Knowledge:
• Expect students to access online college prep systems
• Apprenticeships
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Where are your current strengths?
Key Cognitive Strategies (THINK)
• Problem formulation, research, interpretation, communication,
precision and accuracy.
Key Content Knowledge (KNOW)
• Key foundational content and “big ideas” from core subjects.
Academic Behaviors (ACT)
• Self-management skills: time management, study skills, goal setting, selfawareness,
and persistence.
Transition Skills (College/Workforce Knowledge) (GO)
• Admissions requirements, college types and missions, affording college,
college culture, and relations with professors. Understanding the
context/environment
Common Core
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Impetus for the Common Core State Standards
 Every state had its own set of academic
standards, meaning public-educated students are
learning different content at different rates.
 All students have to be prepared to compete
with not only their American peers in the next
state, but with students around the world.
This initiative will potentially affect 43.5 million students,
which is about 87% of the student population.
What are the Common Core Standards?
“Common Core Standards define the knowledge and skills students
should have within their K-12 education careers so that they will graduate
high school able to succeed in entry-level, credit-bearing academic
college courses and in workforce training programs.”
(NGA & CCSSO, 2010)
http://www.corestandards.org/
Development of Common Core Standards
Joint initiative of:
National
Governors
Association
Supported by:
 Achieve
 ACT
 College Board
Council of
Chief State
School Officers
Foundation for the Standards
Aligned with college and work expectations
• Prepare students for success in entry-level, credit bearing,
academic college courses (two- and four-year
postsecondary institutions)
• Prepare students for success in careers that offer
competitive, livable salaries above the poverty line, offer
opportunities for career advancement, and are in growing
or sustainable industries
Why are Common Core State Standards good for
students?
 College and Career Focus. It will help prepare students with
the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in college and
careers.
 Consistent. Expectations will be consistent for all kids and
not dependent on a student’s zip code.
 Mobility. It will help students with transitions between states
 Student Ownership. Clearer standards will help students
understand what is expected of them and allow for more selfdirected learning by students.
What’s the big deal?
 The CCSS initiative is a “sea change” in education for
teaching and learning!
 The CCSS mandates the student learning outcomes for every
grade level.
 The CCSS force a common language.
 Students will be tested and instructional effectiveness will be
measured based on CCSS.
 Federal funding is tied to CCSS adoption, implementation,
and accountability.
What’s in the Standards?
Attributes of the CCSS:
English Language Arts
 Shift in emphasis from fiction to nonfiction
in reading and writing.
 Focus on close analysis of texts with
evidence to back up claims and conclusions.
 Emphasis in teaching literacy skills in and
through history/social studies, science, and
technical content areas.
What does College and Career
Ready mean for ELA
 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.
(pg 7)
ELA Instructional Shifts
 Balancing Informational and Literary Text
 Building Knowledge in the Disciplines
 Staircase of Complexity
 Text-Based Answers
 Writing From Sources
 Academic Vocabulary
Mathematical Practices
Engage students in the content through the
Mathematical Practices:
1. Problem solving
2. Reasoning
3. Modeling
4. Using tools
5. Making arguments
6. Precision
7. Structure
Mathematics Instructional Shifts






Focus
Coherence
Fluency
Deep Understanding
Application
Dual Intensity
What are the opportunities that come
with the adoption of the Common
Core?
Building an integrated system
Opportunities for Integration
Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment
Bridging the Divide - Achieve
1. Develop a Common Understanding of College and Career Readiness:
Include CTE leaders in efforts to create a broader view of college and career
readiness that gives equal weight to college AND career readiness
2. Form Cross-Disciplinary Teams for CCSS Planning and Implementation:
Ensure that CTE representatives are part of state and district CCSS planning and
implementation teams. If this has not occurred, CTE leaders should take the
initiative to get involved.
3. Ramp up Communications and Information Sharing:
Implement a communications plan that specifically includes CTE educators and
uses a wide variety of communication strategies: email and listserves, informational
videos, local workshops and presentations, and regional and statewide
conferences.
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Bridging the Divide – Achieve cont.
4.Create or Update Curricular and Instructional Resources:
Engage CTE and academic educators to update CTE standards to reflect the
CCSS, Whenever possible, update or create model CCSS-aligned instructional
resources for both CTE and core academic teachers.
5.Enhance Literacy and Math Strategies within CTE Instruction:
Launch new or build upon existing professional development activities to help
CTE teachers integrate literacy and math strategies in their CTE classrooms.
6.Foster CTE and Academic Teacher Collaboration:
Bring CTE and academic teachers together in structured professional
development activities to review and reflect on the CCSS, unpack the standards
to see how they can apply in the CTE context, and create model instructional
resources.
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Bridging the Divide
7.Establish Expectations for and Monitoring CCSS
Integration into CTE:
Include references to the CCSS in annual funding
applications, continuous improvement planning, CTE
teacher qualifications and criteria for local monitoring visits.
8.Involve Postsecondary CTE in CCSS Implementation:
Ensure that postsecondary CTE is also included in outreach
and implementation planning.
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CCSS: Important but Insufficient
To be effective in improving education
and getting all students ready for
college, workforce training, and life, the
Standards must be partnered with a
content-rich curriculum and robust
assessments, both aligned to the
Standards.
Common Career Technical Core (CCTE)
CCTC are released - June 2012
Common Career Technical
Core (CCTE), a shared set of
rigorous, high-quality Career
Technical Education (CTE)
standards have been
developed and were
released on June 19th.
CCTE will ensure that all CTE
students have access to
high-quality, rigorous,
career-focused learning
opportunities in every state,
and every community across
the nation.
For more information on the CCTC, visit www.careertech.org/career-clusters/cctc
Performance-Based Curriculum Integration
Integration Continuum
Curriculum
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Curriculum
What are some ways you are currently integrating in the
area of curriculum
• Model Curricula
• Pathways
• Clusters
• Curriculum templates
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Curriculum Maps – HOW IT IS
Curriculum Maps
– HOW IT SHOULD BE
Instruction
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Instruction
What are some ways you are currently integrating in the
area of instruction?
• Instructional shifts
• Habits of mind and mathematical practices
• Instructional Tasks
• Common Career Technical Core’s (CCTC) Career Ready
Practices
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Assessment
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Assessment
What are you currently doing in the area of CTE
assessments and the Common Core?
• Balanced assessments
– Formative
– Summative
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Examples
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IN CTE Work
Integrating the Common Core into CTE
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Integrating ELA into CTE
• Built a common curriculum framework
• Placed the ELA as the process standards for the
framework
• Brought together teams of teachers to
determine content and areas of emphasis for
courses
• Determine a math anchor course for each
pathway
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MO Work
Model Curricula
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Integrating ELA into CTE
• Built a CTE Model course framework
• SEA were trained as trainers and built training
tools
• Built common professional development tools
and resources to help teams build model CTE
curricula that encompasses CCSS
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Next Steps
Create one concrete next step for integration
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Integrating the Common Core into
CTE programs
https://sites.google.com/site/cteccss/
– Beth Ratway
• Senior Consultant
• bratway@air.org
June 2014