Supporting the CCSS in the Science
Classroom through the Science and
Engineering Practices of the
Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)
John Spiegel
San Diego County Office of Education

Why are we here?
• California adopted NGSS in Fall 2013
• Dramatic shift in the way science will look
• NGSS and CCSS Connection
• Assessment implications

Science is made up of facts as a house is made up of stone
But a collection of facts in no more science as a pile of rocks is a home

Developing the Standards
2011 2011-13
Step 1: Vision for
Science
Step 2: Develop NGSS
Fall
2013
September
State
Adoption of NGSS
2016???
Science
Framework
Assessments
Curricula
Instruction
Teacher
Development
Stay Tuned…

NGSS Timeline:
From Awareness to Implementation
Understanding the nature of the NGSS
Beginning awareness around NGSS
Awareness
---NSTA Readers Guide to the Next Generation Science Standards, 2013, page xi
Thinking about moving from standards to instruction
Transition
Beginning to plan for implementation
Implementation

California is adopting NGSS with the goal of
transforming science teaching and learning by providing all students with the rigorous and relevant education they need for success in college as well as careers and daily lives

1. Science education should reflect the interconnected nature of science
2. Standards are written as performance expectations
3. Science concepts build coherently from K-12
4. Deeper understanding of content as well as application of content.
5. Science and engineering are integrated
6. Prepare students for college, career, and citizenship
7. Alignment to CCSS

These new standards shift the focus from memorization of facts to having students develop deeper conceptual understanding of core scientific ideas and be able to apply the practices of science and engineering into real world problems

What do we want students to know and what do they need to do to know it.
What do we want students to do and what do they need to know to do it.

The Three Dimensions of NGSS
 Disciplinary Core Ideas
 Crosscutting Concepts
 Science and Engineering
Practices

Science and Engineering Practices
• Asking Questions and Defining Problems
• Developing and Using Models
• Planning and Carrying Out Investigations
• Analyzing and Interpreting Data
• Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking
• Constructing Explanations and Designing
Solutions
• Engaging in Argument from Evidence
• Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating
Information

The Crosscutting
Concepts
• Patterns
• Cause and Effect: Mechanism and Explanation
• Scale, Proportion, and
Quantity
• Systems and System Models
• Energy and Matter: Flows,
Cycles, and Conservation
• Structure and Function
• Stability and Change

Disciplinary Core Ideas
44 Core Ideas in
• Physical Sciences
• Life Sciences
• Earth and Space Sciences
• Engineering, Technology, and the
Applications of Science

Integration of the Three Dimensions
 Disciplinary Core Ideas
 Crosscutting Concepts
 Science and Engineering
Practices

Purposes for Assessment
• Formative assessment for use in the classroom and to assist learning
• Summative assessment for use at the classroom, school, or district level to determine student attainment levels.
• Assessment for program evaluation, used in making comparisons across classrooms, schools, districts, states, or nations
Source: Framework for K-12 Science Education, NRC, 2011

Designing Assessments
Assessments must
• Test students’ understanding of science as a
content domain and their understanding of science as an approach
• Provide evidence that students can apply their
knowledge appropriately and are building on
their existing knowledge and skill in ways that lead to deeper understanding of the scientific and engineering practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas
• Address all of these pedagogical goals while also meeting professional educators’ standards for reliability, validity, and fairness
Source: Framework for K-12 Science Education, NRC, 2011

How can science teachers implement the CCSS in their classrooms?
Understand and implement the Science and Engineering Practices of NGSS

The NGSS Online www.nextgenscience.org

John Spiegel, Science Coordinator
San Diego County Office of Education john.spiegel@sdcoe.net
(858) 292-3854