Common Core State Standards Videos (8/31/11)
The Hunt Institute and the Council for Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) have developed a series of video vignettes that describe and explain the Common Core State Standards. In the videos, key Standards writers talk about how the Standards were developed, who was involved, and the goals they set for all students.
View online: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheHuntInstitute.
Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (8/25/11)
Maine is a governing member of the SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SABC), a multi-state collaborative working to develop an assessment system aligned to the Common Core State Standards. Learn more by visiting the Maine DOE's Smarter Balanced Assessments page.
ASCD Special Report: Common Core State Standards (5/19/11)
Now that the Common Core State Standards in English and math have been adopted by most states, how will teaching and learning change? This two-part ASCD SmartBrief Special Report on the Common Core State Standards offers educators a guide to the latest information.
View Part I
View Part II
Note: These e-publications have been developed by an independent party not affiliated with the Maine Department of Education.
Founded in 1943, ASCD (formerly the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development) is a non-profit educational leadership organization dedicated to advancing best practices and policies for the success of each learner. With 160,000 members in 148 countries – professional educators from all levels and subject areas – ASCD provides expert and innovative solutions in professional development, capacity building, and educational leadership essential to the way educators learn, teach, and lead.
Bowen: Vote on rigorous standards creates certainty for Maine schools (3/7/11)
Education Commissioner Stephen Bowen said Monday’s (3/7/11) unanimous passage by the Education Committee of the Common Core State Standards means schools throughout the state can start focusing on adjusting their curriculum to the new, rigorous standards.
Read the full article online.
A First Look at the Common Core and College and Career Readiness (12/7/10)
ACT has released a first-of-its-kind research report entitled A First Look at the Common Core and College and Career Readiness. This report provides a research-based estimate of current student performance relative to the Common Core State Standards that 44 states have now adopted.
The report is intended to:
- Provide an initial look at current student performance relative to the Common Core State Standards
- Guide states in their implementation of the Common Core
- Advise local and state education agencies about where to target instructional resources
- Assist state and federal policymakers in determining the resources needed to effectively support the Common Core State Standards
Click here to view or download the ACT report.
Statement from Acting Commissioner Angela Faherty Regarding the Release of the Final Common Core State Standards
The Fordham Institute Presents Online Exploration of the Common Core State Standards
The Fordham Institute's expert reviewers have analyzed the draft Common Core K-12 education standards (made public on March 10) according to rigorous criteria. Their analyses lead to a grade of A- for the draft mathematics standards and B for those in English language arts.
Click here to read the Fordham Institute's review of the CCSS. (Note: Sheila Byrd Carmichael, co-author of this report, is the national expert who helped author Maine's current ELA standards)
The Fordham Institute has also hosted an online discussion of the CCSS, Understanding Common Core State Standards. Click here to watch this discussion online.
Achieve and the American Council on Education also hosted a webinar recently to introduce the higher education community to the CCSSI. You can review that presentation online by clicking here.
Legislation
Public Law 647, “An Act to Adopt the Common Core State Standards Initiative” can be found in summary form at http://www.mainelegislature.org/LawMakerWeb/summary.asp?ID=280035717
Or in full text at http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/bills/bills_124th/billpdfs/SP070501.pdf
This bill allows the Department of Education to include the so-called "Common Core State Standards Initiative" standards for kindergarten to grade 12 in the State's system of learning results and assessment and grants the Commissioner of Education the authority to adopt emergency rules in order to implement the standards.
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