Common Core Standards
and the Edmonds School
District
November 4, 2013
 National standards
 Math
 English Language Arts – Reading, Writing,
Language, Speaking & Listening
 Includes History/Social Studies, Science,
and other Technical Subjects
Common
Core State
Standards
 Focus on Career and College Readiness
 Articulated K-12
 Assessments aligned with the standards are
being created by the Smarter Balanced
Assessment Consortium
http://www.k12.wa.us/Corestandards/default.aspx
Standards – what we
want our students to know
and be able to do
What are the
big shifts?
English
Language
Arts
 Building content knowledge through contentrich nonfiction
 Balance of literary and informational (nonfiction) text
 Literacy in the content areas
 Reading, writing, and speaking grounded in
evidence from text, both literary and
informational
 Text-based questions and answers
 Writing using evidence
 Regular practice with complex text and its
academic language
 Academic vocabulary
 Increased complexity of text
 Students reading more non-fiction texts
in Science, Social Studies, Health, etc.
What will this
look like
in the
classroom?
 Pairing of literary and informational
texts, which can include artwork, film,
etc.
 Shifts in writing –
opinion/argumentation, narrative,
informative/explanatory
 Short research projects
 Focus – Teachers significantly narrow and deepen the
scope of how time and energy is spent in the classroom
What are the
big shifts?
Mathematics
 Coherence – Teachers carefully connect the learning
within and between grades so that students can build
new understanding onto foundations built in previous
years.
 Rigor – Students deeply understand and can operate
easily within a math concept before moving on. They
learn more than the ‘trick’ to get the answer right; they
learn the math.
 Mathematical Practices – Students in all grades are
expected to reason and explain, make sense of problems,
persevere in problem solving, model using tools, and see
structure and generalize.
 Deeper focus on certain concepts and skills
 More opportunities for students to explain their
thinking
What will this
look like
in the
classroom?
 Students engaged in discussion around concepts
and problems
 Real-world problems that require students to use
various skills and strategies
Assessment
Smarter Balanced Assessments
Aligned with Common Core Standards
Measure “college and career readiness”
Shared by 25 states who will all use common cut scores
Administered online
Will provide achievement scores and growth information for
individual students and groups
Smarter Balanced Assessments
 Field testing in 2013-2014 school year
 Operational in 2014-15 school year
 Will assess:
 English/Language Arts (reading across the content areas,
writing, and listening)
 Mathematics
 Include assessments for grades 3-8 and 11
 Will replace MSP in reading, writing and math
 Will replace HSPE/EOCs in a phased-in approach (grad
requirement for Class of 2019)
Assessment Requirements for
High School Diploma
Subject
Classes of
2013 & 2014
Classes of 2015, 2016, 2017 & 2018
Reading HSPE and Writing HSPE
English Reading HSPE - ORLanguage and Writing ELA Exit Exam
Arts
HSPE
- OR11th-grade Smarter Balanced ELA Test
Algebra 1 EOC
- ORGeometry EOC
Algebra 1 EOC
- OR- ORMath
Algebra 1 EOC Exit Exam
Geometry
- OREOC
Geometry EOC Exit Exam
- OR11th-grade Smarter Balanced Math Test
Science
Class of 2019
11th-grade
Smarter
Balanced ELA
Test
11th-grade
Smarter
Balanced
Math Test
Biology EOC - OR- Comprehensive NGSS Test
Summative Assessments
for Accountability
Components:
1. Computer Adaptive Testing (CAT)
Items adjust to functioning level of each student
Items include both selected-response (e.g., multiple
choice) and constructed-response (written responses)
2. Performance Tasks (PT)
 Complex questions with multiple parts and extended
constructed responses
Staff Training
Communication
 Teachers learning via a train-the-trainer
model – learning takes place on building
days or during other collaborative
opportunities
What does
teacher and
principal
learning look
like?
 Job-embedded learning alongside
elementary coaches and secondary
coordinators
 Principal leadership sessions to understand
the key shifts and the implications for
instruction and assessment
 Ongoing learning opportunities throughout
the year, going deeper into certain topics
 Developing plans for next year –
district-wide and school-based
Communication
with Parents
and community
 This year, conducting a review of
the elementary progress report
 Will be done with a
representative group of teacher
leaders
 Public process in the spring