PARCC PD: Follow-on

What are our first impressions?

 All of the responses to the survey we took after previewing a variety of Smarter Balanced sample tests on Friday are available online.  I've included a few highlights below.

 We all seem to agree that we are, to one degree or another, not yet fully prepared to assess our students with the PARCC test.


Among our chief concerns is how well we will be able to prepare our students to use the technology, particularly the mobile devices, which will be necessary to successfully be assessed via PARCC.


We also seem to be almost universally worried about how we're going to balance this concern with the need to teach the Common Core State Standards which will be necessary to prepare our students for the content on PARCC.

What other concerns do we have?

Below are a few other items you expressed concerns about:
  • The test itself is very difficult to maneuver.
  • Students who don't have technology at home will not do as well.
  • The non-multiple choice items.
  • How or what answers will be excepted?
  • Teaching to the test multi-step problems present too many ways to miss.
  • The academic vocabulary is going to be very difficult.
  • The test is not developmentally appropriate.
  • Difficulty for students with fine motor limitations to effectively take the test on the iPad.
  • What are the expectations for how clear written responses are written?
  • What are counted as acceptable answers?
How will we modify our approach to instruction?

Below are a few solutions and new approaches you provided on the survey.  I hope, as you select some to implement, they serve to alleviate a few of your concerns:
  • I will teach using fewer multiple guess assessments. 
  • Change majority of assessments from one answer to multiple possible answers. 
  • This will also take much longer to grade.
  • We are going to practice, practice and train there technology thinking. 
  • Adapt and implement the common core standards with our curriculum maps. 
  • Better prepare students to explain their thinking and use questioning strategies.
  • Use Ipads integrating technology.
  • Teach more pointedly. 
  • Technology.
  • Discovering a way to teach the students how to answer on the iPad in the manner in which is required for this test. 
  • More multi-step problems. 
  • Requiring students to not only compute but to explain and manipulate. 
  • I will formally instruct my student using this sample test so that they know how to access the required technology. 
  • Will use iPads more in everyday class work 
  • Integrating technology 
  • I will try to find more critical thinking tasks/apps/activities for students to practice with on iPads. 
  • Practice that requires more problem solving with more complicated steps. 
  • Shift happens in both ELA and Math. 
  • We need to align our lessons to be high-level lessons with critical thinking. 
  • Show your work more Higher level of expectations 
  • I plan to use the materials I have to teach the students in a way that they will be asked to solve problems on a test. 
  • Obviously the students will need more access to the iPad so they can practice navigating, word processing, etc. 
  • More performance-type tasks giving students the opportunity to apply their learning in various settings 
How will we make the shift?
During our post-sample-test whole-group discussion, it became clear that we must increase the rigor of our lessons by providing opportunities for students to:
  • become strategic thinkers and better at reasoning (Level 3 of Webb’s DOK)
  • extend their thinking (Level 4 of Webb’s DOK)
How do we do this?

 During our post-test discussion, we brainstormed together a number of other great solutions and new approaches to teaching and learning in more PARCC-like ways:
  • This website is a treasure chest of Close Reading Materials as well as a wealth of other reading materials. It is FREE: Reading Works (Kristin)
  • Provide opportunities for students to do a “Cold” read or a “Cold” write. (Joy)
  • Use leveled reading materials. There is a free trial you can sign up for: Reading A-to-Z The RTI room has a subscription for this school year. (Thompson, McFall, Pavich)
  • Provide a framework for writing opinions and arguments. “This or That” strategy (Stefanie); 
  • Debate using science articles from Science A-to-Z (Bobby)
  • Use Close Read Strategies for your grade level Enrich and Extend RTI groups. (Fisher/Kohl, Ballard, Kasch)
  • Use highlighters to analyze text. (Koenig)
  • Use 4sight constructed responses as a teaching opportunity. (Grant)
  • Use the Socrative app to make quizzes that can require a written response using the iPad . This is just one great application for this app. (Price & Grant)
  • Use the math problem-solving template to teach students how to solve and explain a multi-step math problem. (Kasch, Ballard, Fisher, Kohl)
  • Use the student notebook from the Social Studies materials to provide writing opportunities that are linked to SS content. (Shaw)
  • Use current science/weather events for real world problem solving. (Janelle)
  • Provide project based learning experiences that allow students to be creative thinkers and problem solvers. (Janelle: Science lab; Weather Station: Coe)
  • Collaborate and co-teach an integrated unit with a specials teacher. ( Sheila, Ellen , and Jan)
  • Provide Jan with the academic vocabulary you are learning and she will integrate it into PE!
If you would like more information about these materials, strategies, and units, please contact the person(s) listed or ask Jessica and Joy.

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