Power+Standards+Chapter+1,+Sept+21,+2009

Chapter 1: Why Power Standards? Get into 4 groups of 3. Each group take one of the following questions, discuss, record main points and be ready to share with whole group.

1) How do the different parts of our TEKS relate to the terminology used by Ainsworth: "Standards" and "Indicators"? To what extent are power standards already defined within the TEKS? Is it different for different subjects? What parts of the TEKS need to be prioritized? Standards is like our Knowledge and Skills statements and indicators are like our student expectations. Science (new) TEKS have fewer standards (knowledge and skills), Math has it's focal points and LA has the 5 strands. We probably need to be looking to prioritize some of the Knowledge and Skills and student expectations.

2) Compare and contrast the "Frantic Coverage Model" (Exhibit 1.1) with the "From Coverage to Focus Model" (Exhibit 1.2). What are the implications for teaching for understanding? How do you reconcile the Coverage to Focus Model with the need to teach all standards? ​Both models include the state standards,the need for the teacher to know these standards, and curriculum. The Coverage to Focus Model focuses on curriculum that is an "Inch wide and a mile deep". It allows the teacher to focus on teaching what is essential for understanding, assess for these understandings, and for the students to gain enduring understandings. In contrast, the old model, Frantic Coverage, deals with curriculum that is a "mile wide and inch deep". It is set up for the teacher to frantically cover all content related to the tests with a hit or miss approach while the students try frantically to memorize the content for tests that they will soon forget. Hope to get deeper understanding and retention with the Coverage to Focus Model. Important to preassess to know what to cover. Has to be trust on the part of the teacher on what to cover. Can help with student motivation, improve quality of teaching and preparing students for next level. Gives teachers a tool to help prioritize rather than each one making up their own method when it becomes impossible to cover it all.

3) What are the similarities and differences between Reeves' definition of "essential" and Ainsworth's? What are some ways this group can create an operational definition of "essential"? What might be our next steps? ​Did a Venn Diagram: Reeves: endurance. leverage and readiness vs Ainsworth: School, life and state test. Are all three criteria of equal weight? Different people can look at this differently - what weighs in where? Is it different for different content areas. We don't want to get bogged down in the readiness criteria. What would teachers think? They prefer Reeves because don't like the emphasis on state tests. Even though we have to consider the state test when we do create our criteria? Saw alot of what we put into our purpose for the curriculum documents. Do we have "nice to knows" in our TEKS? What do you need to know to be able to do the power standards? Brings up thought of Learning Progressions and building blocks. Who helps to make this definition? Involve teachers? The Leverage aspect of the criteria is a perfect way to start talking about integration, vertical and horizontal alignment.

4) How would establishment of "essential standards" affect structure __and__ utilization of the Essential Units of Study? How would it affect teaching for understanding? How would it affect closing the achievement gap? T ​We are not eliminating any standards, so we don't see eliminating anything from the EUS. But more prioritizing by bolding or adding a symbol to the EUS to help teachers know what is prioritized. Where would this come? Essential Questions or know and do statements? See it as a planning tool for teachers. Help them to know how to prioritize teaching for understanding. In terms of closing the achievement gap, if identifying PS helps us to eventually create learning progressions for those PS, that may help teachers to know how to help students who are struggling. Lots of connections with the Differentiated Instruction & UBD book, how and what to differentiate. What all students need to understand and how to differentiate at the know and do statements. Also connections with Dual Language and the connections that teachers are suppose to make to know which students understand and which need more teaching on that topic. Teacher content knowledge plays a big part in teachers trusting and understanding use of PS and EUS. By identifying PS, it might eliminate some of the repetition in the EUS.

We agreed to all read Chapters 2 & 3 for our next meeting on Oct 19.