Common Core State Standards in Mathematics

CARRIE HEATH PHILLIPSSEPTEMBER 7, 2011

Overview of the Initiative

State-led and developed common core standards for K-12 in English/language arts and mathematics

Initiative led by Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and National Governors Association (NGA)

Why did governors and chiefs do this?Prepare students with the knowledge and skills

they need to succeed in college and work

Ensure consistent expectations regardless of a student’s zip code

Make states more globally competitive

Provide educators, parents, and students with clear, focused guideposts

Offer economies of scale

College- and Career-Readiness as the Anchor

Career-readiness and college-readiness levels are very similar

There is a gap between high school expectations for students and what students are expected to do in college/career Among high school graduates, only half

are academically prepared for postsecondary education (Greene & Winters, 2005).

Features of the standards

Aligned with college and work expectations

Focused and coherent

Include rigorous content and application of knowledge through high-order skills

Build upon strengths and lessons of current state standards

Internationally benchmarked

Based on evidence and research

Standards Development Process

College- and career-readiness standards for English/language arts and mathematics developed summer of 2009

Based on the college and career readiness standards, K-12 learning progressions developed

Public comment period with 10,000 responses

Final standards released on June 2, 2010.

44 states and D.C. have fully adopted the Common Core State Standards; 1 state has provisionally adopted the standards; and 1 state has adopted only the ELA standards.

Common Core State Standards Adoption(as of September 2011)

Math Standards: Design and Organization

Standards for Mathematical Practice Carry across all grade levels Describe habits of mind of a mathematically expert student

Standards for Mathematical Content K-8 standards presented by grade level High school standards presented by conceptual theme

Appendix Designing high school math courses based on the Common

Core State Standards

High School

Conceptual themes in high school Number and Quantity Algebra Functions Modeling Geometry Statistics and Probability

College and career readiness threshold (+) standards indicate material beyond the threshold; can be

in courses required for all students.

Math Key Advances

FOCUSCoherenceBalance of concepts and skills

Importance of deep understanding and procedural fluency

Mathematical practices Foster reasoning and sense-making in

mathematicsApplication Problem-solving and communication

New Common Summative Assessments

Two assessment consortia Partnership for Readiness for College and

Career (PARCC) SMARTER Balanced

New summative assessments used for accountability purposes in 2014-2015 school year

Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC)

Governing Board States Participating States

PARCC Assessment Design Within Year

End-of-Year Assessment

•Innovative, computer-based items

Performance-BasedAssessment (PBA)

•Extended tasks•Applications of concepts and skills

Summative assessment for accountability

Formative assessment

Early Assessment•Early indicator of student knowledge and skills to inform instruction, supports, and PD

ELA/Literacy•Speaking•Listening

Flexible

Mid-Year Assessment•Performance-based•Emphasis on hard to measure standards•Potentially summative

Source: Center for K–12 Assessment & Performance Management at ETS

Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium

  

Source: Center for K–12 Assessment & Performance Management at ETS

Consortia Similarities

Beyond multiple choice and short answer tests; will include performance tasks

Focus on depth of understanding and higher-order thinking skills

Computer-based, with quicker turn-around for scoringMore precise, actionable information than current testsMore interactive than current testsMore writing (particularly writing to sources) than current

testsDigital libraries of resources, including released items,

formative assessments, data-management system, and professional development

Consortia Differences

Computer-based adaptive testing is used in SMARTER Balanced Consortium. PARCC has computer-based, but not adaptive, testing.

Teacher scoring is emphasized in SMARTER Balanced when evaluating performance tasks.

Performance Event Sample: Math

Performance Event Sample: Math continued

Performance Event Sample: Literacy in Science/Technical Subjects

Compare what the latest science tells us about Genetically Modified food against the arguments offered for and against Genetically Modified food.

Evaluate the hypotheses, data, analysis, and conclusions of each side, including determining the extent to which each side in the debate over Genetically Modified food relies on the available science, argues from an economic perspective or appeals to political and emotional concerns.

Verify the data from each author and corroborate or challenge the conclusions with other sources of information.

Implementation Timeline and Themes

Some states implementing this year in grades K-2. Full implementation in handful of states and districts.

Key areas of support states/districts are seeking: Instructional materials: what take away from what you’re teaching

along with what you need to add Professional development: beyond awareness of the standards –

professional learning communities, job-embedded professional development

Instruction and assessments: depth of understanding required of students

Literacy in content areas

Mathematics Common Core Coalition (MC³)

Resources

www.corestandards.org

www.ccsso.org

Carrie Heath Phillips

Program Director, Common Core State Standards

Council of Chief State School Officers

carrieh@ccsso.org

Twitter: @cheathphillips