1. Washington Science Teachers Association Conference October 24, 2015
Bundling for Performance: Grouping the NGSS Performance Expectations to Enhance Student Comprehension
Washington Science Teachers Association Conference October 24, 2015
Peter J. McLaren
Director – State and District Support for Science
Achieve, Inc.

2. Introductions and Overview
Role of Course Maps
Looking at Connections – Bundling
How can NGSS Evidence Statements be used to support the bundling process?
Where can you find resources to support the process?

4. NRC Framework, 2012, p.218
Standards and performance expectations that are aligned to the framework must stake into account that students cannot fully understand scientific and engineering ideas without engaging in the practices of inquiry and the discourses by which such ideas are developed and refined. At the same time, they cannot learn or show competence in practices except in the context of specific content.

5. Common Misconception
“Each performance expectation is discrete and needs to be taught separately from other performance expectations.”

6. Organization of the NGSS Performance Expectations
From kindergarten to grade 5, the NGSS are organized by grade level,
Each grade has a set of performance expectations
No need to create pathways
Grades 6 to 12, the NGSS performance expectations are organized by grade band,
PEs in these grade bands are not assigned to any specific grade
PEs must be organized into courses
Secondary courses and PEs are handled differently across the nation.
As states and districts implement the NGSS…
Important to consider how these grade banded PEs can be organized into courses

7. So…How Do We Do This?

8. Appendix K – Model Course Maps
Released in 2013 the course maps are based on the structure of the NRC’s Framework
Models demonstrate how the performance expectations for middle school and high school can be arranged in multiple ways in a sequential and cohesive manner into courses.

9. Middle School Model Course Map
Model course maps are starting points, not finished products.
Model course map organization is built on the structure of the Framework.
All Standards, All Students.
Model course maps are not curriculum.
All Scientific and Engineering Practices and all Crosscutting Concepts in all courses.
Engineering for all.
***The Model Course Maps are just a few examples of the many course maps that can be developed. Educators are encouraged to develop their own maps depending on their district or school’s course structure.

10. Course Maps Don’t Do It All…
Model Course Maps help support the development of secondary course structures, BUT
they do not address how to organize standards within a course.

11. So…How Would You Do It?

12. organize standards into units of study?
How Would You..
organize standards into units of study?
use the standards to engage students around a phenomenon or problems?

13. I’ll Give You A Hint…

15. Create a Bundle bundle Noun | bun·dle | bən-dəl
From Mirriam – Webster:
bundle
Noun | bun·dle | bən-dəl
: a group of things that are fastened, tied, or wrapped together
: a group of things that are together or are associated with each other in some way
: a person who has a lot of some quality or who is known for a particular kind of behavior

16. What is bundling?
Bundling refers to organizing performance expectations or parts of performance expectations into groups based on shared characteristics in order to facilitate comprehension of an overall process or concept.
Goal:
student understanding of the performance expectation will build over time through the context of the focused concept.
allow students to gain a deeper understanding of the concept
Students build proficiency toward the performance expectation.

17. What Does Bundling Do? Bundling the performance expectations
allows educators to have instructional goals for each unit
helps to facilitate formative assessment of student proficiency toward the performance expectations throughout the course.

18. Bundling of Standards Will…
provide educators with target performance expectations and instructional goals at the unit level,
Provide opportunities to create three-dimensional lessons
Gauge student understanding and proficiency during the progression of the course.
Dispel the misconception that each standard is taught separately and distinct from one another.

19. Let’s Look At An Example

22. Simple Bundle
MS-LS1-7. Develop a model to describe how food is rearranged through chemical reactions forming new molecules that support growth and/or release energy as this matter moves through an organism.
MS-PS1-5. Develop and use a model to describe how the total number of atoms does not change in a chemical reaction and thus mass is conserved. 
Patrick

23. What are NGSS Evidence Statements?
Evidence statements provide detail on how students will use the
- practices,
- crosscutting concepts and
- disciplinary core ideas
together to demonstrate proficiency on the PE’s.

24. The Purpose of Evidence Statements
Describe what teachers or assessors would observe (not infer).
Provide specific, observable components of student performance that would demonstrate integrated proficiency for 3-Dimensional Learning, including:
practice to demonstrate understanding of the
disciplinary core ideas (DCIs)
through the lens of the crosscutting concepts (CCC).

25. Structure
Organized by Scientific and Engineering Practice
Integrate all dimensions
Developed specifically for the Performance Expectations

26. Simple Bundle
MS-LS1-7. Develop a model to describe how food is rearranged through chemical reactions forming new molecules that support growth and/or release energy as this matter moves through an organism.
MS-PS1-5. Develop and use a model to describe how the total number of atoms does not change in a chemical reaction and thus mass is conserved. 

27. MS-LS1-7 and MS-PS1-5

28. MS-LS1-7 and MS-PS1-5

29. Questions so far?

30. Classroom Example – Middle School (Patrick Goff – Fayette County Schools, KY)
Decide on the PE Bundle that you want to use. (Natural Hazard Unit)
08-ESS3-2. Analyze and interpret data on natural hazards to forecast future catastrophic events and inform the development of technologies to mitigate their effects.
08-ESS3-3. Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment.*
Decide on a phenomena we wanted to center this unit around.
Once decided on the above two items, look at the corresponding Evidence Statements to get a sense of the expectations for the student proficiency levels for the PE’s.

31. Classroom Example – Middle School

32. Classroom Example – Middle School
4. Team collaborated on culminating assessment. 5. Assessment was compared to the Evidence Statements to see what types of observable evidence would be demonstrated. 6. After this, begin the design of the instructional process, making sure to consult the Evidence Statements as the process went on.

33. Classroom Example – Middle School
7. Once the instructional sequence is completed, review to see if it will provide opportunities for students to provide observable evidence.

34. Evidence Statements are Not…
descriptors of teacher practice (i.e. prompts, techniques)
descriptions of increasing levels of cognitive difficulty, Depth of Knowledge levels, or varying levels of student proficiency (e.g., using the first category as the least difficult or first stepping stone for developing student proficiency).
a checklist that denotes the ordering of steps in a student’s performance.
instructional strategies or steps in a classroom activity.
sufficient to replace lesson plans or assessment items
scoring rubrics
limits on student coursework

35. How Evidence Statements can be used
Instruction
Important! Evidence statements detail what students should be able to do at the end of instruction.
Evidence Statements should NOT be used to plan instruction, but they can be used to validate instructional plans.
NGSS PEs and the corresponding evidence statements are not a substitute for day-to-day lesson goals that drive the learning process.
Although evidence statements are listed individually for each performance expectation, this does not indicate that they should be measured individually, or that performance expectations should be taught or assessed individually. Think BUNDLING!

36. Questions so far?
Patrick

37. What Are Some of the Ways You Could Bundle?
By DCI
By Practice
To Explore Phenomenon and Problems
By Crosscutting Concepts
Betsy:
While students is later grades also develop their understanding through directly observable contexts and phenomena, the emphasis in later grades shifts to 1) more complex phenomena, and 2) unobservable mechanisms and scientific theories.
in K-5, students understand that plants need water and light to grow; in 6-12, they are responsible for understanding how photosynthesis and cellular respiration mechanistically support water and light to allow plant growth).
The PEs contain language that may have different connotations when used in science vs. non-science contexts. Additionally, the disciplinary core ideas, science and engineering practices and crosscutting concepts, and therefore the accompanying language, are often new in the elementary grades. Consequently, extra care was taken to provide clarifying examples in K-5. These examples should not be considered exhaustive or prescriptive, but may help 1) clarify meanings in the evidence statements, and 2) provide guidance for where extra professional development may be helpful.

38. Classroom Example – Crosscutting Concept
Systems in 4th Grade - From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
4-LS1-1 Construct and argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth behavior, and reproduction.
4-LS1-2 Use a model to describe that animals receive different types of information through their sense, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways.
Betsy: Use evidence statements where systems is used to inform me about how students would show understanding of systems in context.

39. Classroom Example – DCI Organization
4-PS3-2 Make observations to provide evidence that energy can be transferred from place by sound, light, heat, and electric currents.
4-PS3-4 Apply scientific ideas to design, test, and refine a device that converts energy from one form to another.
Energy might include developing or using models of circuits (transfer of energy by electric currents) identifying the circuit as a system
3B Conservation of Energy and Energy transfer

40. Now, how comfortable do you feel about the concept of bundling?
1. Not at all comfortable
2. Somewhat comfortable
3. Extremely comfortable
Betsy

42. Model Content Frameworks anticipated release January, 2016

43. Model Content Frameworks
To address the needs of educators, the Model Content Frameworks were created to show educators examples of how bundling works within courses and how it can aid in the process of curriculum development.
Betsy:
Bullet 2:
provide detail on how students will demonstrate proficiency on the PEs by the end of instruction using the:
the practices
crosscutting concepts, and
disciplinary core ideas

44. Model Content Frameworks
Are not intended:
to be curricula or lesson plans
To prescribe how educators should teach.
do not limit how many times a performance expectation can be included in a course or a grade range
do not limit the practices that can be used in each unit to the practices that appear within a certain performance expectation.
Educators are encouraged to incorporate additional practices beyond the ones explicitly stated in the unit’s performance expectations, and thus the section for additional suggested practices is included.

45. Model Content Frameworks
ARE intended:
show educators how to bundle performance expectations into units with instructional goals for each unit. It is up to the educators how they wish to meet those goals.
provide EXAMPLES of how to bundle performance expectations
educators are encouraged to use them as models to develop their own.
Bundling will be different for each district or school depending on the context and the courses taught.
Educators are encouraged to use these models to create their own content frameworks that are appropriate for their own schools, students, and context.
The models were created with the intention that they would be altered to fit the specific needs of states and districts.

46. Storyline/Narrative:
This section outlines the rationale behind the breakdown and bundling of the PEs in the course.
Unit:
This section identifies the unit names that each bundle of PEs has been placed into.
Bundle Description/ Rationale:
This section explains the goal of each unit and how the unit ties into the overall course narrative.
Proficiency
PEs ES
This column lists the bundle of PEs for the unit
This column lists whether students will be completely or partially proficient in the entire PE by the end of the unit. Partial proficiency is associated with sections of the PE’s evidence statement.
Additional Suggested Practices:
This section suggests additional practices. It shows educators how they can integrate multiple PEs, including engineering standards, in the instruction toward each PE.
Additional Suggested Practices

47. Where can I find them?
Nextgenscience.org/resources
Betsy:

48. Bundling Performance Expectations amplify student understanding
Summary
Bundling Performance Expectations amplify student understanding
NGSS Evidence Statements provide observable evidence that can be used to help in the bundling process.
Evidence Statements are not lesson plans!
Model Content frameworks will help inform educators in the process of bundling.
Patrick

49. Final Thoughts
Ask yourself the question, “Am I engaging in topics or am I engaging in phenomena and authentic problems”
Provide opportunities for students to “make their thinking visible”
Don’t necessarily teach they way you were taught.

50. Memorization vs Engagement

51. Have a Joe DiMaggio Day

52. Questions?
Patrick and Betsy

53. Contact Information
Peter J. McLaren Director of State and District Support -
Please don’t hesitate to contact me regarding the Lead Partner State application process or for any other questions that may arise.