Expecting the BestCommunicating About the Importance

of Common Core

www.ReadyWA.org

October 22, 2013

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Agenda

• What is Common Core?

• Why Common Core?

• What’s Different?

• Questions/Answers

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Agenda

Group activity (20 minutes)

• Barriers: Identify 5 barriers to communicating to families about Common Core

• Key messages: How would you communicate the value of Common Core to your neighbor?

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What is Common Core?

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What is Common Core?

• What’s your level of knowledge?

• How would you describe Common Core?

• Why are we raising expectations for students?

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What is Common Core?

The Common Core State Standards:• K-12 learning standards in math and English

language arts (math, reading & writing)• Learning standards set expectations for what

students should know and be able to do by the end of a specific section or by the end of the school year in each grade.

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What is Common Core?

The Common Core State Standards:• Raise the level of learning expectations for all

students• Match the learning standards of

top-performing nations• Developed and voluntarily adopted by 46

states in collaboration with educators, experts

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What is Common Core?

• Until now, all 50 states had different learning standards

• This is a big change in the way students learn and one that will take time to see results (first test scores released in summer 2015)

• It’s an approach that will help students compete for quality jobs Washington state and our nation have to offer.

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What is Common Core?

• Jeff Charbonneau, 2013 National Teacher of the Year (Zillah, WA)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZI5Ufnf8Em8

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WhyCommon Core?

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Why Common Core?

• Economy– Common Core first developed by governors and

state school chiefs, realizing U.S. is losing battle to remain globally competitive

• Equity– All students have the same expectations;

different starting positions, same finish line

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Why Common Core?

October 2013, OECD Releases ResultsTested adults in 24-countries on skillsimportant to succeeding in the workplace.American adults performed below the international average in:• Math• Reading• Problem-solving

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Why Common Core?

Washington state’s economy:• Washington ranks 1st in concentration of STEM

jobs. – STEM = science, technology, engineering and math

• Washington ranks 1st in the creation of software companies.

• Washington’s ranks 4th in the nation in technology-based corporations.

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Why Common Core?

March 2013, Washington Roundtable report:“Great Jobs Within Our Reach: Addressing the Growing Job Skills Gap”

• Right now, Washington has 25,000 unfilled jobs for highly-skilled workers – and that number is projected to double by 2017.

• 80% of jobs in STEM and healthcare fields

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Why Common Core?

Currently in Washington:• Less than half of our students graduate from

high school ready for college– 48% of students in Washington’s 2-year colleges

require remediation.– 37% of students in Washington’s 4-year

universities require remediation.

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Why Common Core?

Currently in Washington:• Washington has the 12th largest achievement

gap in the country; one of a dozen states where it continues to grow– Based on Annual Measurable Objectives (AMOs)

released last week, all but Asian students regressed from 2012 to 2013

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Why Common Core?

• Washington ranks 38th in the nation for the number of bachelor’s degrees awarded per capita.

• By 2018, 2 out of every 3 jobs in WA will require a college degree or certificate

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Why Common Core?

Last Thursday, a poll of 200 Oregon high school students by Chalkboard Project was released:• Only 18 percent reported they are "very satisfied" with

their own education, with 28 percent unsatisfied and 51 percent "somewhat satisfied."

• Asked whether they think public schools in Oregon expect students to learn too little or too much, 45 percent said too little. About 35 percent said the academic demand is "about right," and 17 percent said schools ask too much.

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Common Core: What’s

Different?

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Common Core: What’s Different?

• Consistent learning expectations for all students– Different starting positions; same finish line

• Clear standards that focus on deeper understanding– Typical state standards a “mile wide and an inch deep”

• Critical skills students need in the job market– Help them compete in the global economy

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What’s Different?

Consistent learning expectations• Before Common Core, all 50 states had different

sets of expectations for what students should know and be able to do in each grade.

• Common Core provides a consistent set of learning standards and expectations for all students, no matter where they live.

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What’s Different?

Clear standards, deeper understanding• Common Core goes deeper into fewer

topics and focuses on developing students’ deeper understanding of key concepts.

• The standards build on one another, allowing students to apply the skills and knowledge they learned in the previous grade to real-life situations.

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What is Common Core?

Critical skills for the job market• Common Core focuses on building and applying

real-world skills students need to be ready for college and work.

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What’s Different?

Common Core and Testing• Next generation assessment system (Smarter

Balanced or PARCC depending on your state)• Technology based• Adaptive and interim exams• Higher bar; scores will be initially lower than on

typical state exams

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What’s Different?Common Core and Testing

Jeff Charbonnuea talks about importance of testinghttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Avr3u8XI6es

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Group Activity

Family Engagement

• Barriers: What do you see as barriers to communicating Common Core to families? (5 minutes)

• Key messages: How would you communicate the value of Common Core to your neighbor? (10 minutes)

• Report: Let us know your group ideas

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Questions/Answers

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Common Core FAQs

Will schools and teachers still have control over teaching materials and other local decisions?• Yes. The way in which the Common Core learning

standards are taught is up to each of Washington’s 295 school districts and more than 2,000 schools. Each school or district will continue to have the flexibility to select the teaching materials and resources that best meet the needs of its students.

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Common Core FAQs

If we raise learning expectations, will the tests be harder, too?• Initially, yes. But not because students will know less,

because we’ll expect more. Research shows that when you raise learning expectations, students will work harder to meet them. Most parents and teachers understand that a drop in test scores is temporary, and that raising learning standards is important for our economy and our students’ futures.

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Common Core FAQs

Who developed Common Core?• A non-partisan group of governors and state

school chiefs started working together on shared standards in 2009.

• Hundreds of teachers, education researchers, mathematicians, and other experts across the country provided input and guidance in a collaborative process.

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Questions/Answers

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Common Core FAQs

Do people in WA support Common Core?• Yes, across Washington, 80% of parents,

teachers and people like you support the Common Core. (January 2013 poll by Strategies 360 for Washington STEM)

• 70% of teachers and voters agree that common standards in math and English will improve student learning and achievement. (January 2013 poll by DHM Research for Excellent Schools Now)

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Common Core FAQs

Do teachers support Common Core?• Nearly 75% of 20,000 teachers surveyed by

Scholastic, Inc., said Common Core will improve students’ abilities to reason and think critically.– "When you get down to what's happening in the classroom, the

teachers support it. And without the teachers, Common Core cannot happen.” -- Margery Mayer, Scholastic's president of education

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Ready Washington Coalition

• Ready Washington is a coalition of state and local education agencies, associations and advocacy organizations that support college- and career-ready learning standards. The coalition believes all students should be better prepared for college, work and life to build the skills to compete for the quality jobs that our state has to offer.

• Sign on to coalition by supporting Common Core and agree to disseminate materials/messaging

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Learn More

Visit www.ReadyWA.org • Handouts• FAQs• Info on WA’s Common Core efforts• Videos• Facebook.com/ReadyWA

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Ready WA Website

ReadyWA.org features videos and a story on Jeff Charbonneau, the 2013 National Teacher of the Year.

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Newsletter

Sign up to receive the Real Learning for Real Life newsletter from Ready Washington at ReadyWA.org

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Poster

We sent posters to every middle and high school in the state. Poster is geared toward students in grades 7-12 to think about their futures. Download a copy at ReadyWA.org

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Translated Handout

“What Is Common Core” handout is available in six languages. Top 3 things you should know about Common Core and FAQs section

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Brochure

A brochure explaining the move to Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards

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‘Expanding Expectations’ Report

Partnership for Learning released a report in September on Common Core and raising expectations in Washington. Visit www.parternship4learning.org to download report.

Thank You

Questions, Comments, Suggestions?

Support for Real Learning for Real Life campaign is brought to you in part by College Spark Washington