PA Core for ELAPrincipal Meeting October 4, 2013

A Brief History• Common Core State Standards Initiative

• National Governors Association• Council of Chief State School Officers

• PA Adoption July 2010• PA Core Standards

• Aka PA Common Core Standards• Added Pre-K

• Big Picture of ELA & Literacy

CCSS - Organization

Copyright ©2011 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 3

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards

Appendix A: Research behind the standards and a glossary of terms

Appendix B: Text exemplars illustrating complexity, quality, and range of reading appropriateness

Appendix C: Annotated samples of student writing at various grades

Reading Informational

Text

Reading Literature

Foundational Skills Writing Speaking & Listening

A necessary component of an

effective, comprehensive

reading program designed to develop proficient readers.

Enables students to read, understand, and

respond to informational texts.

Enables students to read, understand,

and respond to literature.

Develops the skills of informational,

argumentative, and narrative writing as well as the ability to engage in evidence

based analysis of text and research.

Focuses students on communication skills that enable

critical listening and effective

presentation of ideas.

PA Common Core StandardsEnglish Language Arts & Literacy

PA Common Core – Reading and Writing for Science and Technical Subjects 6-12 (Draft)

PA Common Core – Reading and Writing for History and Social Studies 6-12 (Draft)

PA Core Standards – Organization

Key Shifts in ELA/Literacy1. Balancing Informational and Literary Texts2. Knowledge in the Disciplines3. Staircase of Complexity4. Text Based Answers5. Writing from Sources6. Academic Vocabulary

Changes to Make• Distribution of Reading and Writing• Text Complexity• Increase Rigor

Distribution of Reading

Distribution of Writing

Text Complexity

• Quantitative• Qualitative• Reader and Task

Text Complexity• Appropriate Texts• Multiple Texts• Layered Texts

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

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

3. 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.

Overview of Text Complexity

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

Step 1: Quantitative Measures

Quantitative Measure

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Step 2: Qualitative Measures

Measures such as:• Layers of meaning• Levels of purpose• Structure• Organization• Language conventionality• Language clarity• Prior knowledge demands• Cultural demands• Vocabulary

Quantitative Measure

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Step 3: Reader and Task

Considerations such as:• Motivation• Knowledge and experience• Purpose for reading• Complexity of task assigned

regarding text• Complexity of questions

asked regarding text

Quantitative Measure

Rigor

Rigor is creating an environment in which each student is expected to learn at high levels, and each is supported so he or

she can learn at high level, and each student demonstrates learning at high

level. 

(Blackburn, 2008).

Rigor

• Higher Level Questioning• Instructional Expectations and Assignments

• Proper Support at the Proper Times• Assessments

• Webb’s Depth of Knowledge

A Common Core Classroom• Deeper order thinking should be on show. With CCSS,

it’s not enough for students to just memorize how to do something, in many cases they’re expected to know why.  Teachers should be challenging students to explain their thinking and to provide proof.

• The classroom should be language-rich. It doesn’t matter what you teach anymore language skills are expected to be involved.  Reading, writing, and speaking skills should be practiced across the board and every classroom from elementary to high school, from self-contained to subject specific should be reflecting that.

Summary provide by Association of American Educations www.aaeteachers.org

A Common Core Classroom• Class time should be maximized. Not that teachers

were doing this before, but with CCSS, even more than before, teachers need to be planning for “bell to bell” instruction, which is absolutely necessary to teach the more complex thinking skills associated with Common Core.

• The atmosphere should be one of “create and learn,” not “sit and get.” In order to push the thinking skills associated with CCSS, students will need to be engaged in their lessons.  If all a student ever does is sit and take notes, they won’t be able to learn how to think.

Summary provide by Association of American Educations www.aaeteachers.org

A Common Core Classroom• Technology should be a part of learning. The CCSS

specifically call for students to learn how to communicate and collaborate with others using technology.  Expect to see a greater push toward blogging, Twitter, and services like Google docs.

Summary provide by Association of American Educations www.aaeteachers.org

A Common Core Classroom

What evidence of these bullet pointsdo you see in this classroom?

Video from PD360

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Resources• SAS Portal www.pdesas.org • Content Area Wiki http://cliu21cng.wikispaces.com • Excellence in Education

www.barbarablackburnonline.com • EngageNY www.engageny.org• The Teaching Channel www.teachingchannel.org