Common Core is Here!

If you have a school-age student, you may have noticed that education strategies have changed a little bit this year.  Teachers in the Berryessa School District are embracing the transition to the new Common Core standards.  These standards have been adopted by 45 states in order to allow for consistency no matter where families move during their children's school years.  

The main purpose of Common Core is to help students become college and career ready by being "robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers."  The standards stress critical thinking and promote a conceptual understanding of math and language arts material.  That is why the standards in math, for example, ask for more than learning and repeating techniques, but also the ability to explain why techniques and methods apply to different kinds of problems.  

Common Core standards stress Communication, Collaboration, Creativity, and Critical Thinking.  When I visit classrooms, I see students working on group projects and utilizing team learning.  I see teachers drilling down to make sure students truly understand the context of what they are learning.  In the long run, this kind of learning will better prepare our future adults to be successful in whatever endeavors they choose.

Changing standards will require a new way of evaluating student performance.  Starting with the 2014-2015 school year, students will take computer based assessments that are able to adjust the level of the questions on the fly, depending on how students perform during the test.  This will allow a more accurate and thorough evaluation.  

Implementing these new Smarter Balanced Assessments requires a robust technology infrastructure since tests will no longer be done using #2 pencils, but will instead require a computer for each student.  The State of California has decided that this year should focus on preparing students for the new testing next year.  Therefore, the state has suspended STAR testing for the current school year.  Schools will pilot the Smarter Balanced Assessment instead. 

There are many resources available online to learn more about Common Core standards.  The Curriculum Corner offers a simple summary of Common Core Standards.  The California Department of Education website provides an overview of Common Core and details of the state standards.  And you can take a pilot Common Core test on your own computer at Smarter Balanced's site.