Empowering Teachers and Empowering Teachers and StudentsStudents

HISD Power Objectives

Welcome!Welcome!

Kelly Trlica, Ed.D.

Assistant Superintendent

Secondary Curriculum,

Instruction, & Assessment

Tracy Weeden, Ed.D.

Assistant Superintendent

Elementary Curriculum,

Instruction, & Assessment

HISD Curriculum – How did we HISD Curriculum – How did we get here?get here?

• Project CLEAR Introduced standards-based district-wide

curriculum

• CLEAR Online Introduced new vehicle for disseminating

curriculum

• PASS Student data disaggregation tool

• Snapshots District-wide benchmarks

• Model Lessons Curriculum resources based on CLEAR curriculum

HISD Curriculum – How did we HISD Curriculum – How did we get here?get here?

• New CLEAR Online Interface New curriculum documents Vertical Alignment Matrix TEKS/TAKS Correlations Horizontal Alignment Planning

Guides

• Revised Documents

• Power Objectives Initiative

HISD Curriculum – Where are HISD Curriculum – Where are we going?we going?

Instructional Management System

Power Objectives: A Power Objectives: A DefinitionDefinition• The term “Power Standards”

was coined by Dr. Douglas Reeves.

• Because HISD refers to knowledge and skills that a student must acquire as “objectives,” we have modified Reeves’ term to “Power Objectives.”

Power ObjectivesPower Objectives

HISD Power Objectives are a subset of the complete list of HISD objectives (based on the TEKS/SEs) for each grade and for each subject.

Power ObjectivesPower Objectives

“ …are those objectives that, once mastered, give a student the ability to use reasoning and thinking skills to learn and understand other curriculum objectives.”

--Dr. Douglas Reeves

The Rationale for Power The Rationale for Power ObjectivesObjectives

Teachers and curriculum specialists agree there are too many objectives

to cover in the amount of time available to

teachers!

According to the experts…According to the experts…

• Robert Marzano calculated that there are 3,500 benchmarks spread across 14 different content areas.

• To teach all the objectives in all the content areas, he remarked, “You would have to change schooling from K – 12 to K – 22!”

• If educators are given no strategies for managing the volume of objectives, they must, on their own, “pick and choose” the ones they believe will most benefit their students.

• This subjective selection leads to inconsistencies as to which objectives are emphasized and which are not.

“I’ve stopped teaching… Now I’m just giving the kids worksheets and practice drills so I can at least cover the rest of the material they will be tested on.”

Words of CautionWords of Caution• Identifying Power Objectives

does not relieve teachers of the responsibility for teaching all objectives and indicators.

• It must be decided which objectives are critical for student success, and which other ones can be given less emphasis.

Identifying Power Identifying Power ObjectivesObjectives

Three criteria should be used to identify Power Objectives

1.Endurance

2.Leverage

3.Readiness

Three Criteria for Power Three Criteria for Power ObjectivesObjectives

#1 - EnduranceWill this objective provide

students with knowledge and skills that will be of value beyond a single test date?

# 2 - Leverage Will this objective provide

knowledge and skills that will be of value in multiple disciplines?

#3 - Readiness Will this objective provide

knowledge and skills that are required for the next level of learning?

A “guiding question” for determining Power Objectives…

What must my students learn to be successful

in school, in life,

and on TAKS?

Remember…Remember…

• The textbook is not the curriculum.

• Stanford 10 is not the curriculum.

• TAKS is not the curriculum.

• Power Objectives are not the curriculum.

The HISD Objectives are the curriculum.

Next StepsNext Steps

• Develop recommendations for first drafts

• Solicit feedback

• Revise drafts

• Implement power objectives

• Ongoing professional development

HISD wants YOU

to help our district identify Power ObjectivesPower Objectives!