Unpacking the PA Common Core
for Specialists
October 2012
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Welcome
• Introductions
• What do we already know about the Common Core?
• What are our burning questions?
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Agenda
• PA Common Core Timeline
– Three-year plan
– Thinking About the Change
• Overview of the Common Core
– ELA
– Math
• Rigor
• Other Resources
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
PA Common Core Proposed Timeline
Pending Federal
Approval
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Transition to PA Common Core
2012-13
• Grades 3-8 Reading and Mathematics PSSA based on
the current assessment anchor content standards (not
the Common Core State Standards). Offered online and
paper/pencil. No change
• Grades 5 and 8 Writing PSSA based on current
standards and offered online and paper/pencil. No
change
• Grades 3-5 Writing stand alone field test – offered
paper/pencil only. New
• Science PSSA – no changes – offered online or
paper/pencil.
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Transition to PA Common Core
2013-14
• Grade 3-5 Math and ELA PSSAs assessment anchor content
standards aligned to the Common Core State Standards. Available
online and paper/pencil. Also, note that the ELA PSSA assesses
writing at each grade level, including 3 and 4. New
• Grades 6-8 Reading and Math PSSA based on current anchors and
eligible content. Available online and paper / pencil. No change
• Grade 8 Writing PSSA based on current assessment anchors. No
change
• Grade 6-8 stand alone writing field test. Paper / Pencil only. New
• No changes to Science PSSA.
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Transition to PA Common Core
2014 - 15
• Grades 3-8 ELA and Math PSSA based on
assessment anchor content standards aligned
to Common Core State Standards. Offered
online and paper / pencil. Note: First time
writing is assessed in grades 6 and 7.
• Grades 4 and 8 Science PSSA offered online
and paper / pencil. No change
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Transition to PA Common Core
Keystone Exams
• 2012 – 13
– Three Keystones: Alg 1, Lit, Bio
– All 11th graders; all others completing a Keystone
related course
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Thinking About the Change
• Article “Building on the Common Core”
• Discussion
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Overview of ELA
• Video
• Discussion
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Key Advances - ELA
Reading
 Balance of literature and informational texts
 Text complexity
Writing
 Emphasis on argument and informative / explanatory
writing
 Writing about sources
Speaking and Listening
 Inclusion of formal and informal talk
Language
 Stress on general academic and domain-specific vocabulary
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Key Advances - Literacy
Standards for reading and writing in history /
social studies, science, and technical subjects
• Complement rather than replace content
standards in those subjects
• Responsibility of teachers in those subject
areas
Alignment with college and career readiness
expectations
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Where Should We Start? – ELA
• “Balancing the reading of informational
and literary texts so that students can
access non-fiction and authentic texts as
well as literature
• Focusing on close and careful reading of
text so that students are learning from the
text” PA CCS ELA, draft, 2012
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Balance of Informational
and Literary Texts
PA Common Core for ELA
• PA Standards
• PA Anchors and Eligible Content
• Appendices
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Questions
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Overview of Math
• Video
• Discussion
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Key Advances – Math
• Focus and coherence
– Focus on key topics at each grade level
– Coherent progressions across grade levels
• Balance of concepts and skills
– Content standards require both conceptual
understanding and procedural fluency
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Key Advances – Math
• Mathematical Practices
– Foster reasoning and sense-making in
mathematics
• Application
• Dual Intensity
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Standards for Mathematical Practice
• Standards for Mathematical Practice
– “The Standards for Mathematical Practice
describe varieties of expertise that mathematics
educators at all levels should seek to develop in
their students. These practices rest on important
‘processes and proficiencies’ with longstanding
importance in mathematics education.” CCSS, 2010
– “…an understanding that all is framed around the
Standards for Mathematical Practice.” PA CCSM, draft,
2012
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Standards for Mathematical Practice
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
PA Common Core for Math
• PA Standards
• PA Anchors and Eligible Content
• Appendix
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Questions
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
RIGOR
• What is rigor?
• What does it look like in the classroom?
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Comparing Two Math Tasks
Martha’s Carpeting
Martha was recarpeting
her bedroom which
was 15 feet long and
10 feet wide. How
many square feet of
carpeting will she
need to purchase?
Fencing
Ms. Brown’s class will raise rabbits for their spring
science fair. They have 24 feet of fencing with
which to build a rectangular rabbit pen to keep
the rabbits.
a.
b.
c.
Both tasks:
Stein, Smith, Hennigsen, and
Silver, 2000
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
If Ms. Brown’s students want their rabbits to have
a s much room as possible, how long would each
of the sides of the pen be?
How long would each of the sides of the pen be if
they had only 16 feet of fencing?
How would you go about determining the pen with
the most room for any amount of fencing?
Organize your work so that someone else who
reads it will understand it.
Webb’s Depth of Knowledge
• Norman L. Webb, University of Wisconsin
• Began 1997
• Complexity of both content and task required
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Depth of Knowledge
• Classification of cognitive complexity
– Nominative rather than taxonomy
– Not about easy vs. difficult
– Verb and it’s context
• Considers complexity of both content and task
required
– Content: simple vs. complex data displays
– Task: solving routine vs. non-routine problems
using those data displays
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Depth of Knowledge
“The DOK level describes the kind of thinking
involved in the task, not whether it will be
completed correctly. A greater DOK level
requires greater conceptual understanding
and cognitive processing by the students.
Therefore, on average, students who reach
greater DOK levels more regularly will have
increased student achievement.”
Marconi, Smith, and Lombardi; “Depth of Knowledge: An Effective Tool for Education Students” in Shop Talk Vol. 4, No. 2 Spring 2009, The Southern
Nevada Regional Professional Development Program.
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Why Depth of Knowledge?
•To ensure that the intent of the standard and the
level of student demonstration required by that
standard matches the assessment items (required
under NCLB)
•To assist in teaching to a level that will promote
student achievement
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
DEPTH OF KNOWLEDGE - Level One
Recall and Reproduction
requires recall of information, such as a fact,
definition, term, or simple procedure, as well as
performing a simple process or procedure. Level 1
problems involve only one step. A student
answering a Level 1 item either knows the answer
or does not: that is, the answer does not need to be
“figured out” or “solved.”
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
DEPTH OF KNOWLEDGE - Level Two
Skills and Concepts/Basic Reasoning includes the
engagement of some mental processing beyond
recalling or reproducing a response. The content
knowledge or process involved is more complex.
These actions imply more than one step. Level 2
activities include making observations and collecting
data.
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
DEPTH OF KNOWLEDGE - Level Three
Strategic Thinking/Complex Reasoning
requires deep knowledge using reasoning, planning,
using evidence, and a higher level of thinking than the
previous two levels. The cognitive demands at Level 3
are complex and abstract. The multi-step task requires
more demanding reasoning. In most instances, requiring
students to explain their thinking is at Level 3. Other
Level 3 activities include drawing conclusions from
observations; citing evidence and developing a logical
argument for concepts; explaining phenomena in terms
of concepts; and using concepts to solve non-routine
problems.
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
DEPTH OF KNOWLEDGE - Level Four
Extended Thinking/Reasoning
requires high cognitive demand and is very complex.
Students are required to make several connections –
relate ideas within the content area or among content
areas – and have to select or devise one approach
among many alternatives on how the situation can be
solved. Performance assessments and openended/constructed response assessment activities
requiring significant thought will be Level 4.
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Depth of Knowledge
From: Lois Barnes
SREB/HSTW
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
• Level 1 — Identify this utensil.
• Level 2 — Explain the function of
the fork.
• Level 3 — Identify two examples
of when a fork would not be the
best utensil for a type of food and
explain why.
• Level 4 — Design an investigation
to determine the optimal number
and length of tines for a salad
fork.
Depth of Knowledge
• Level 1 — Identify the type of tree.
• Level 2 — Explain the function of the
leaves.
• Level 3 — Explain how a drought
might affect the growth of the tree.
• Level 4 — Design an investigation of
seedling growth to determine the
best fertilizer for this type of tree.
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Next Steps
Not just about what to teach.
Shifting how the learning occurs.
• Planning Template with Guiding Questions
• Additional Resources
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Questions
Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111
Thank You
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Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
Department
(610)769-4111