INSTRUCTIONAL SURVIVAL TOOLKIT HARNETT COUNTY SCHOOLS 1

WHAT ARE COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS & HOW CAN YOU AS PARENTS HELP YOUR CHILDREN? 2

TONIGHT YOU WILL LEARN MORE ABOUT THE FOLLOWING: UPWARD MATH & SCIENCE GRANT CAREER & COLLEGE PROMISE READY INITIATIVE & ITS COMPONENTS ESSENTIAL STANDARDS & COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS 3

Ashley Tittemore, Central Carolina Community College Upward Math & Science Grant 4

CAREER & COLLEGE PROMISE Joni Pavlik Dean of Business & Media Technologies & Public Services 5

CHANGING CURRICULUM PAST TODAY NC STANDARD COURSE OF STUDY

COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS 7

HOW ARE COMMON CORE STANDARDS DIFFERENT? 8

THINKING… Math is not just about the procedural skills...it’s about conceptual understanding. ELA is not just about learning to read...it’s about gaining insights, broadening perspectives, focused research projects, writing arguments, academic discussion, vocabulary growth, and using formal English.

ESSENTIAL STANDARDS New Standards: Science Social Studies World Languages Healthful Living Fine Arts Guidance 10

HOW CAN PARENTS HELP? Use the NC WISE Parent Portal (PAM) Talk with the teachers. Ask your child to explain his/her homework. Use homework websites. Help your child problem solve.

READY initiative (New Accountability Model) piloted End of Course tests in Algebra I, English II, and Biology % of students proficient 2. Achievement of Benchmarks in English, Math, Science, Reading, and Writing (ACT in Junior Year) % of students who score well enough to have a 75% chance of getting a C or higher in their first credit-bearing college course 3. 4 and 5 year Cohort Graduation Rate 4-year:% of students who were freshmen in who graduated in year: % of students who were freshmen in who graduated by Graduates Passing Algebra II 5. Future-Ready Core Completion % of graduates who pass higher level math classes 6. Work Keys % of graduates achieving the Silver Level on the three WorkKeys assessments 12

WHAT IS THE COMMON THEME WITH THESE NEW ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES? Career and College Readiness Work Keys % of graduates achieving the Silver Level on the three WorkKeys assessments End of Course tests in Algebra I, English II, and Biology % of students proficient Achievement of Benchmarks in English, Math, Science, Reading, and Writing 4-year:% of students who were freshmen in who graduated in year: % of students who were freshmen in who graduated by Future-Ready Core Completion % of graduates who pass higher level math classes Graduates Passing Algebra II 13

EPA EXPLORE can be given in 8 th grade as an indicator of college readiness. PLAN is given to students during October of the 10 th grade year ACT is given during March of the11 th grade year. 14

HOW DOES ACT DETERMINE IF STUDENTS ARE COLLEGE READY? EMPIRICALLY DERIVED, ACT’S COLLEGE READINESS BENCHMARKS ARE SCORES ON THE ACT SUBJECT AREA TESTS THAT REPRESENT THE LEVEL OF ACHIEVEMENT REQUIRED FOR STUDENTS TO HAVE A 50% CHANCE OF OBTAINING A B OR HIGHER OR ABOUT A 75% CHANCE OF OBTAINING A C OR HIGHER IN CORRESPONDING CREDIT-BEARING FIRST-YEAR COLLEGE COURSES. THE ACT COLLEGE READINESS BENCHMARKS ARE: Subject Area TestEXPLORE © Benchmark PLAN © Benchmark ACT © Benchmark English Reading Mathematics Science202124

COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS ACT defines college and career readiness as the acquisition of the knowledge and skills a student needs to enroll and succeed in credit-bearing, first- year courses at a postsecondary institution (such as a two or four year college, trade school or technical school) without the need for remediation. ACT’s definition of college and career readiness was adopted by the Common Core State Standards Initiative and provides a unifying goal upon which educators and policymakers must now act. 16

EXPLORE 8 th /9 th Grade PLAN 10 th grade ACT 11 th /12 th grade SCORE SCALES RELATIONSHIP English Math Reading Science English Math Reading Science English Math Reading Science Writing

Serves as the entry measure of academic progress toward college and career readiness when used with PLAN and the ACT Designed to help 8 th and 9 th grade students Curriculum-based achievement test that measures college readiness Assesses academic progress Helps students understand and begin to explore the wide range of career options open to them Career Interest Inventory and educational/career plans collected

EXPLORE SCORE REPORT Resources 19

Provides a midpoint assessment of academic progress toward college and career readiness when used with EXPLORE and the ACT Designed to help 10 th grade students Curriculum-based achievement test that measures college readiness Most powerful predictor of performance on the ACT Used for course placement including dual-enrollment/rigorous courses Career Interest Inventory and educational/career plans collected

PLAN SCORE REPORT Resources 21

22 ACT Information

ACT SAMPLE STUDENT REPORT 23

YOUR COLLEGE REPORT Relationship between the tests, questions, and subscores 24

Test No. of QuestionsSubscore(s) English Test75Usage/Mechanics (40 questions) Rhetorical Skills (35 questions) Mathematics Test60Pre-Algebra/Elementary Algebra (24 questions) Intermediate Algebra/Coordinate Geometry (18 questions) Plane Geometry/Trigonometry based (18 questions) Reading Test40Social Studies/Natural Sciences reading skills (20 social studies & natural sciences questions) Arts/Literature reading skills (20 prose fiction & humanities questions) Science Test40None: the total test score is based on all 40 questions. Relationship between the tests, questions, and subscores RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TESTS, QUESTIONS, AND SUB- SCORES 25

WHICH AREA IS YOUR BEST FIT? The World-of-Work Map's career areas cover all U.S. jobs. A career area's location is based on its primary work tasks—working with: Data: Facts, numbers, files, business procedures Ideas: Knowledge, insights, theories, new ways of saying or doing something People: Care, services, leadership, sales Things: Machines, tools, living things, and materials such as food, wood, or metal 26

WORLD OF WORK MAP 27

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF OUR STUDENTS TAKING EXPLORE, PLAN, & ACT? Students will know how they compare to the scores of other students They will be matched to the requirements of preferred colleges They will see how they are linked to specific strengths and weaknesses in their own skills Students will be able to compare their scores with their grades 28

HOW CAN SCHOOLS USE THE RESULTS? Academic advising and counseling Identifying students who would benefit from assistance with certain subject areas or academic skills Evaluating the effectiveness of instruction Planning changes and improvements in the curriculum 29

HOW DO COLLEGES USE RESULTS? Admissions Course Placement Advising Scholarships 30

Where do we go from here to make sure our students are READY? 31

SOURCES

Questions? Allison Castle Secondary Director, Harnett County Schools Extension