One More Peek at the Smarter Balanced Assessment System

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http://www.smarterbalanced.org/

Ripe Figs

Read through the passage. Then use what you know to answer the questions.

Find the others with the same book cover as you and discuss your responses.

Text Complexity

Defining Rigor through Research and the Common Core Standards

Outcomes

Define text complexity and describe why it matters

Practice reading complex text and using text-based evidence in discussion

Evaluate text complexity of a non-fiction passage

Identify implications for our work as school and district leaders

Myths about CCSSMyth #3 The Common Core standards represent a modest change from current practice.

“…several states conducted analyses that found considerable alignment

between them and their current standards. Yet while the content of the

two sets of standards is similar, the level of knowledge and skills the

Common Core calls for is in many respects quite different from what

current standards expect and what schools currently practice.”

Five Myths About the Common Core State StandardsBy Robert Rothman

Protocol – part 1

Read Appendix A, pages 2, 3 and top half of 4 Identify a passage that you feel has

implications for your work Identify a back up passage

Three Levels of Text Protocol1. Form a group of three people2. Identify a time keeper and a facilitator3. One person has up to three minutes to:

Level 1- read aloud the passage they selected Level 2 – tell about what he/she thinks about the passageLevel 3 – Tell about the implications for their work

4. The group responds for up to two minutes5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until everyone has shared

their passage.

Break http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo0Cazxj_yc

Text Complexity

“The Common Core Standards hinge on students encountering appropriately complex texts at each grade level in order to develop the mature language skills and the conceptual knowledge they need for success in school and life.”

“A survey by the National Association of Manufacturers, Anderson, and the

Center for Workforce Success (2001) found that 80 percent of businesses had

a moderate to serious shortage of qualified candidates, citing poor reading as a

key concern.”

“Another survey, published in 2000, found that 38 percent of job applicants

taking employer-administered tests lacked the reading skills needed for the jobs

for which they applied; this percentage had doubled in four years, not just

because applicants lacked basic skills but also because the reading

requirements for these jobs had increased so rapidly (Center for Workforce

Prevention, 2002).”

Career Readiness

“Based on 2005 ACT-tested high school graduates, it appears that only about half of our nation’s ACT-tested high school students are ready for college-level reading. Unfortunately, the percentage…is substantially smaller in some groups.”“Since 1999, readiness has declined – the current figure of 51 percent is the lowest of the past 12 years.”

College Readiness

All students must be able to comprehend texts of steadily increasing complexity as they progress through school.

What are the current realities in college and career readiness?

ACT, INC. Report (2006)

Key requirement for college and career readiness

As performance on one level increases, so does the performance on the other and to the same degree.

Comprehension Level

As performance on one level increases, so does the performance on the other and to the same degree.

Textual Elements

“Performance on complex texts is the clearest differentiator in reading between students who are more likely to be ready for college and those who are less likely to be ready.”

Text Complexity

Summary of Findings:

Literal and inferential questions No clear differentiator of readiness for college

Textual elements No clear differentiator of readiness for college

Performance with complex text Clear differentiator of readiness for college

Hunt Institute Video Segment 2

The balance between Informational and Literary Texts in K-5

Turn to your elbow partner and discuss what the implications might be. What new things might be required of students?

Overview of Text Complexity

Text complexity is defined by:

Qual

itativ

e

2. Qualitative measures – levels of meaning, structure, language conventionality and clarity, and knowledge demands often best measured by an attentive human reader.

Quantitative

1. Quantitative measures – readability and other scores of text complexity often best measured by computer software.

Reader and Task3. Reader and Task considerations – background knowledge of reader, motivation, interests, and complexity generated by tasks assigned often best made by educators employing their professional judgment.

Where do we find texts in the appropriate text complexity band?

Choose an excerpt of text from Appendix B:

We could...

or…

Use available resources to determine the text complexity of other materials on our own.

A Four-step Process:

Determining Text Complexity

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QuantitativeQual

itativ

e

Reader and Task

4. Recommend placement in the appropriate text complexity band.

3. Reflect upon the reader and task considerations.

2. Analyze the qualitative measures of the text.

1. Determine the quantitative measures of the text.

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Measures such as:• Word length• Word frequency• Word difficulty• Sentence length• Text length• Text cohesion

Step 1: Quantitative Measures

Step 1: Quantitative Measures

Lexiles

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The Quantitative Measures Ranges for Text Complexity Gr. Band Old Lexile Lexile Rangle

Aligned to the CC Standards

K - 1 N/A N/A

2 – 3 450 - 725 450 – 790

4 – 5 645 - 845 770 – 980

6 – 8 860 – 1010 955 – 1155

9 – 10 960 - -1115 1080 – 1305

11 - CCR 1070 – 1220 1215 - 1355

Step 1: Quantitative Measures

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Let’s imagine we want to see where a text falls on the quantitative measures “leg” of the text complexity triangle, using the Lexile text measures.

For illustrative purposes, let’s choose Harper Lee’s 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird.

Finding a Lexile Measure for Text: http://www.lexile.com/findabook/

Step 1: Quantitative Measures

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Step 1: Quantitative Measures

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Text Complexity Grade Bands

Suggested Lexile Range

Suggested ATOS Book Level Range**

K-1 100L – 500L* 1.0 – 2.5

2-3 450L – 790L 2.0 – 4.0

4-5 770L – 980L 3.0 – 5.7

6-8 955L – 1155L 4.0 – 8.0

9-10 1080L – 1305L 4.6 – 10.0

11-CCR 1215L – 1355L 4.8 – 12.0

Quantitative Measures Ranges for Text Complexity Grade Bands

Kansas Common Core Standards

* The K-1 suggested Lexile range was not identified by the Common Core State Standards and was added by Kansas.

** Taken from Accelerated Reader and the Common Core State Standards, available at the following URL: http://doc.renlearn.com/KMNet/R004572117GKC46B.pdf

Step 1: Quantitative Measures

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Lexile Text Measure:

ATOS Book Level

870L

5.6

Step 1: Quantitative Measures

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For texts not in the Lexile database, consider using the Lexile Analyzer: http://www.lexile.com/analyzer/

• Registration is required (free) http://www.lexile.com/account/register/

• Allows user to receive an “estimated” Lexile score

• Accommodates texts up to 1000 words in length

• Texts of any length can be evaluated using the Professional Lexile Analyzer—educators can upgrade to this tool for free by requesting access http://www.lexile.com/account/profile/access/

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Step 2: Qualitative Measures

Measures such as:• Levels of meaning• Levels of purpose• Structure• Organization• Language

conventionality• Language clarity• Prior knowledge

demands

Step 2: Qualitative Measures

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The Qualitative Measures Rubrics for Literary and Informational Text:

The rubric for literary text and the rubric for informational text allow educators to evaluate the important elements of text that are often missed by computer software that tends to focus on more easily measured factors.

Partner Share

How do the demands for text complexity increase from low to high?

Step 2: Qualitative Measures

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Step 2: Qualitative Measures

Lexile Text Measure:

ATOS Book Level:

870L

5.6

From examining the quantitative measures, we knew:

But after reflecting upon the qualitative measures, we believed:

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Considerations such as:• Motivation• Knowledge and

experience• Purpose for reading• Complexity of task

assigned regarding text

• Complexity of questions asked regarding text

Step 3:Reader and Task Considerations

“Texts can be difficult or easy,

depending on factors inherent

in the text, on the relationship

between the text and the

knowledge abilities of the

reader, and on the activities in

which the reader is engaged…

When too many of these factors

are not matched to a reader’s

knowledge and experience, the

text may be too difficult for

optimal comprehension to

occur.”

Reader & Task Step 3:Reader and Task Considerations

Step 3:Reader andTask Considerations

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The questions included here are largely open-ended questions without single, correct answers, but help educators to think through the implications of using a particular text in the classroom.

Step 4: Recommended Placement

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Based upon all the information—all three legs of the model—the final recommendation for To Kill a Mockingbird is….

Step 4: Recommended Placement

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In this instance, Appendix Bconfirms our evaluation of the novel. To Kill a Mockingbird is placed within the grade 9-10 text complexity band.

Tim Shanahan

“To succeed, we will need to…strive to

identify what makes a book hard and then to

provide the scaffolding and motivation that

would sustain students’ efforts to learn from

such challenging texts.”

Common Core Standards: Are We Going to Lower the Fences or Teach Kids to Climb? Thursday, October 13, 2011

Step 4: Recommended Placement

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Template for Text Complexity Analysis and Recommended

Placement Form:

Appendix B: Text Exemplars

Go to pages 4-13 in Appendix B. Locate where to find Informational Text exemplars for your grade level/content area.

Then, take a look at those exemplars.

Hunt Institute Video Segment 3

Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects

Peruse through pages 60-66 of your ELA CCSS. What are your observations? What are the implications for Social Studies

and Science Teachers?

Wrap Up

1. Exit Slip – Readiness to Implement Survey2. Clock Hours Feedback Form3. Clock Hours

Research Base ACT, INC. Report (2006)

Common Core State Standards (2010)

National Reading Panel Report (2000)

Publishers’ Criteria for the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts and Literacy Grades K-2 and Grades 3-12 (2011)

RAND Report: Reading for Understanding: Toward an R&D Program in Reading Comprehension (Snow, 2002)

Reading in the Disciplines: The Challenge of Adolescent Literacy (Lee & Spratley, 2010)