The Common
Core + ? =
Deeper Learning
and CCR?:
Three Key Skill
Sets to Pay
Attention To
Dr. Karin Hess
Senior Associate
Center for Assessment
karinhessvt@gmail.com
www.karin-hess.com
Ready for College?
Meeting the CC Standards and
Beyond through Deeper,
Student-Centered Learning
Hess & Gong (2014)
http://www.nmefoundation.org/resources/scl-2/ready-for-collegeand-career
“cliff notes” version:
http://www.districtadministration.com/article/one-pathway-collegeand-career
Turn & Talk…
Think about the knowledge &
skills that best prepared you for
college, post-secondary training,
work, or life after high school?
My focus today…
Findings based on a review of the
CCR research & SCL practices
What CAN the Common Core do to
prepare students for college & careers if
and when fully implemented by skilled
educators?
 What is “beyond” the Common Core in
terms of college and career readiness?
 How can student-centered learning
practices support both deeper learning &
college and career readiness?

(Hess & Gong, 2014, p.1)
“… we posit that there are multiple
pathways, different approaches, and
perhaps a broader set of standards and
skills beyond those articulated in the
Common Core that are needed to truly
prepare students for college or careers. The
academic content standards themselves
do not ensure that all students will graduate
from high school ready for college and
career without having additional (individual
and system) supports in place.”
What CAN the Common Core
do to prepare students for
college & careers?
 Limited content areas
CCSS “Instructional shifts”
 Other “cross-cutting skills &
dispositions” – What’s explicit?
What’s only implied in the
Common Core?

ELA
CCSS “Instructional Shifts”
Shifts
Shift 1
Shift 2
Shift 3
Shift 4
Shift 5
Shift 6
English Language Arts and Literacy
Increase reading of informational texts
Increase the complexity of texts read
Increase understanding of “academic
vocabulary”
Focus on close reading and text-based
answers
Focus writing on use of sources
Implement literacy skills across all
content areas
Mathematics
CCSS “Instructional Shifts”
Mathematics Content (& Math Practices)
Shifts
Shift 1
Focus: narrow & deepen instructional scope
Shift 2
Coherence: connect prior learning to new
learning
Shift 3
Rigor: conceptual understanding, procedural skill,
and mathematical applications
Shift 4
Fluency: speed & accuracy with simple
calculations
Shift 5
Deep Understanding: deeply understand math
concepts before moving on
Shift 6
Application: choose the appropriate math
concept for application
(Hess & Gong, 2014)
Simply teaching the standards and
addressing the Common Core “shifts” will
not be enough, because this approach
focuses on what content to teach, but
not on how to support student learning
-- shifts in how curriculum & the learning
environment are organized
-- shifts in the roles of students and teachers
in the learning process
-- shifts in what assessments must measure
A broader CCR framework
Three broad types of knowledge, skills, &
aptitudes = CCR
Academic
Learning &
taking action
Intra-personal
Interpersonal
Our research synthesis
What is “beyond” the
Common Core in terms of
College & Career Readiness?
 What
other skills and dispositions are
strong indicators of students being on
track for future success in college or
careers and can support the intended
learning described in the Common Core
State Standards?
 What additional skills and dispositions are
necessary for deeper learning that will be
required by college or future careers?
Think about the knowledge &
skills that best prepared you for
college, post-secondary training,
work, or life after high school?
Were they…
 Academic?
 Interpersonal?
 Intrapersonal?
[Blue text=explicit in CC]
Which CCR Knowledge & Skills Best Prepared You?
Academic Knowledge
& Skills
Intra-personal
Knowledge, Skills,
& Aptitudes
Inter-personal
Knowledge, Skills,
& Aptitudes
Context-specific
Knowledge &
Skills (specific to a
job situation)
applying math or
technology skills
to work-related,
real-world tasks
work ethic,
conscientiousness, taking
initiative
teamwork,
collaboration,
leadership
Acquired
Disciplinary
Knowledge &
Skills (courses
taken)
using evidence
to support
analysis, solving
a multi-variable
problem
intellectual
openness,
flexible thinking
group problem
solving
Learned
Cognitive Skills
(learned within
courses/activities)
critical thinking,
reasoning,
argumentation
self-awareness,
time and goal
management
communication
using digital
tools
3 Interrelated CCR skill sets
Integrating Academic & Cross-Cutting
Skills in Cognitively Demanding
Learning Tasks (all content areas)
CCR Skill Set #1
Providing Opportunities to
Initiate, Sustain, Extend, &
Deepen Learning
CCR Skill Set #3
CCR Skill Set #2
Supporting the Ability to Develop Independence as a Learner
3 Interrelated CCR skill sets
Integrating Academic & Cross-Cutting
Skills in Cognitively Demanding
Learning Tasks
CCR Skill Set #1:
-- Communication:
precision and
accuracy of
discipline-specific
language and
thought
-- Critical thinking,
abstract reasoning,
and problem solving
Providing Opportunities to Initiate,
Sustain, Extend, & Deepen Learning
CCR Skill Set #3:
-- Transfer &
construction of new
knowledge
-- Disciplined inquiry,
elaborated
communication
-- Creativity,
innovation, creativeproductive thinking
CCR Skill Set #2:
-- Targeted/contextualized study and organizational skills
-- Metacognition (self-awareness, self-monitoring, self-control)
-- Academic perseverance/grit; intrinsic motivation to reach learning goals
Supporting the Ability to Develop Independence as a Learner
Deconstructing Skill Set #1
Integrating Academic & Cross-Cutting Skills
in Cognitively Demanding Learning Tasks

Communication: precision and accuracy of disciplinespecific language and thought (DOK 1 & 2)



Apply domain-specific & technical language in context
Recognize what information & structures are needed
Critical thinking, abstract reasoning, and problem
solving (DOK 3 & 4)




Look for schemas/big ideas (e.g., taking a genre apart);
build expertise in a discipline (novice to expert)
Detect incompleteness, inconsistency, and opportunities
for expansion of ideas, products, procedures
Formulate core questions, explore strategies &
approaches, justify choices & decisions
Transfer what’s known to non-routine situations
Deconstructing Skill Set #2
Supporting the Ability to Develop
Independence as a Learner

Targeted/contextualized study and organizational
skills (DOK 2)



Metacognition (self-awareness, self-monitoring, selfcontrol) (DOK 3, DOK 4)




Break down tasks, set goals/timelines
Seek out relevant resources (e.g., mentors, peers)
Review past activity – what worked? What didn’t?
Monitor progress against benchmarks
Learn from missteps, new/unexpected insights
Academic perseverance/grit; intrinsic motivation to
reach learning goals (builds over time)

See progress as a continuum & possibility; believe you
can improve (e.g., “I can change my brain capacity &
expertise.” A. Duckworth); have a ‘growth mindset’
Deconstructing Skill Set #3
Providing Opportunities to Initiate,
Sustain, Extend, & Deepen Learning

Transfer & construction of new knowledge (DOK 3 & 4)



Disciplined inquiry, elaborated communication (DOK 4)





Look for new applications, new insights/opportunities,
deeper questions
Justify WHY it has value (personal, social , cultural, etc.)
Initiate and extend knowledge & skills
Apply discipline-specific approaches (research methods)
Generate own complex questions
Demonstrate ‘complex’ messaging (e.g., multimedia)
Creativity, innovation, creative-productive thinking
(DOK 3 & 4)

Explore /develop new schemas based on known
schemas (e.g., solve /address old problem in a new way)
What does CCR research say
about…
Use
of technology?
Teamwork
& collaboration?
Making connections
How can student-centered
learning practices support
both deeper learning &
college and career readiness?
Assessment Types & SCL
Integrating Academic & Cross-Cutting
Skills in Cognitively Demanding
Learning Tasks
CCR Skill Set #1:
-- performance
assessments
-- ongoing, formative
assessments
promoting selfreflection
-- short & longer
constructed response
Providing Opportunities to Initiate,
Sustain, Extend, & Deepen Learning
CCR Skill Set #3:
-- project-based
assessments
-- peer & selfassessments promoting
self-reflection
-- portfolio assessments
-- mentor-assessments
CCR Skill Set #2:
-- peer & self-assessments promoting self-reflection
-- ongoing, formative assessments
-- individualized assessments, such as personalized learning plans
Supporting the Ability to Develop Independence as a Learner
The road ahead…
Three propositions…

Proposition 1: Re-design curriculum and instruction to
systematically integrate targeted cross-cutting skills with
challenging academic learning to achieve greater
levels of rigor and deeper learning in each content
area

Proposition 2: Restructure the “classroom” and the
school day to expand learning opportunities that are
relevant and authentic to what will be expected in
college and careers and employ a range of technically
sound assessments to measure this learning

Proposition 3: Redefine the roles of teachers and
students, placing students closer to the center of their
learning and expanding our ideas of who/what is the
“teacher”
Some Key References
Beyond standards: Supporting deeper, student-centered
learning to promote college and career readiness






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Duckworth, Peterson, Matthews, & Kelly. (2007). Grit:
Perseverance and passion for long-term goals.
Lucas, Claxton, & Spencer. (2013). Progression in student
creativity in school: First steps towards new forms of formative
assessments.
Farrington, Roderick, Allensworth, Nagaoka, Keyes, Johnson, &
Beechum. (2012). Teaching adolescents to become learners The role of non-cognitive factors in shaping school
performance: A critical literature review.
Mojkowski, & Washor. (2013). Leaving to learn: How out-ofschool learning increases student engagement and reduces
dropout rates.
Newmann, King, & Carmichael. (2007). Authentic instruction
and assessment: Common standards for rigor and relevance in
teaching academic subjects.
Savitz-Romer & Bouffard (2012). Ready, willing, and able: A
developmental approach to college access and success.
Hess, K. (2013). Linking research with practice: A local
assessment toolkit to guide school leaders. www.karin-hess.com