Double check to be sure your membership with Iowa ASCD is current for 2015 as all members of Iowa ASCD will receive access to 30 on-line books that they can read and even listen to!  You will be able to download excerpts, take notes, and use a multitude of other features!

Following is a summary of one of the books available.  This is a great support for all of you who attended the Iowa ASCD Fall Academy, featuring author Jay McTighe!  It also helps you unpack your standards, engage your students, and think more deeply about learning and understanding!

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• "Unpack" standards and organize your curriculum around big ideas and core processes.
• Engage more students in thoughtful inquiry and discussion to promote deeper understanding of content and a culture of inquiry.
• Signal to students that deep thinking about content is required, not optional.
• Develop independent learners and foster 21st century skills.

Offering dozens of examples, the authors explore the usefulness of  essential questions in all K-12 content areas, including skill-based areas such as math, PE, language instruction, and arts education. Their guidance and strategies ensure you know how to

• Identify characteristics that make a question "essential."
• Use essential questions to "unpack" standards.
• Design effective essential questions working from many sources, including standards, desired understandings, and potential student misconceptions.
• Use essential questions as a focus for daily classroom instruction.
• Support respectful and meaningful differentiation.

Related resources:

• See the book's Table of Contents and excerpts of the book and information about the author

Be sure to plan to attend the Curriculum Leadership Academy on April 23-24,  Assessing the Core:  Grading for Learning

Ken O'Connor will be the key note speaker on April 23.  Ken O'Connor, a.k.a. The Grade Doctor, specializes in issues related to the communication of student achievement, especially grading and reporting. Through books and articles, presentations and working with small groups Ken has helped individuals, schools, and school districts to improve communication about student achievement.  In 1995 Ken developed eight guidelines for grading, and he has continued to refine those guidelines. In 2007 the same ideas were organized into fifteen fixes for broken grades. He has also designed eleven guidelines for standards-based reporting. He is now generally acknowledged to be one of a small group of leading experts on how to grade and report effectively.  All participants will receive his latest hot-off-the-press book, How to Grade for Learning, K-12.  

On April 24, 2015, several districts from across the state will share their stories on transitioning to grading based on the learning and demonstration of the Iowa Core.  Matt Townsley, Solon Community School District, will be the final keynote, sharing Solon's story - what worked, what didn't, and what you can do to make grading in your district based on progress in learning and demonstration of the standards!

Join us for this great opportunity to learn and network with others leaders of learning in the state!

Too often, students who fail a grade or a course receive remediation that ends up widening rather than closing achievement gaps. According to veteran classroom teacher and educational consultant Suzy Pepper Rollins, the true answer to supporting struggling students lies in acceleration. In Learning in the Fast Lane, she lays out a plan of action that teachers can use to immediately move under-performing students in the right direction and differentiate instruction for all learners--even those who excel academically. This essential guide identifies eight high-impact, research-based instructional approaches that will help you

Matt Townsley, Director of Instruction and TEchnology for the Solon Community School District, Iowa ASCD members, and ASCD Emerging Leader (2014), shares the following with the members of Iowa ASCD.

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The Iowa Core Essential Concepts and Skills are being reviewed? "Say it ain't so, Joe!  

School leaders may be wise to keep an eye on the status of our state's academic standards during the next several years. Under Governor Branstand's Executive Order 83, Iowa will begin this fall regularly reviewing its state K-12 standards. Science will be the first content area reviewed:

"The review of science standards will be followed by reviews of the other parts of Iowa's statewide standards, which cover social studies, mathematics, English language arts and 21st century skills. Each review will follow a similar format."

(Source: Iowa Department of Education)

When I read about this process, two implications for school leaders came to mind with immediate answers:

When will this process begin and end?

 

Does this mean the Iowa Core Essential Concepts and Skills will change or no longer be required?

Preliminary recommendations "will be taken to the public for feedback. The team will then consider the public feedback before sending a final recommendation to (Director) Buck and to the State Board of Education next spring."  It is possible small or large changes could be made to the current state standards. It is also possible no changes will be proposed at all. It is too early to tell.

In addition, several other side effects of this review process are question marks right now:

• Will this be an opportunity for our state's science, social studies and 21st century skills to move towards grade-level rather than grade-span standards?
• How might this review process (positively or negatively) influence the movement to create state fine arts standards? 
• How might this review process impact Iowa's current involvement with the Common Core State Standards?

In the next issue of The Source, I will highlight the  Assessment Task Force's decision to recommend the Smarter Balanced Assessmentsand its implications for school leaders.

Ellingson has extensive experience with professional development and school improvement. He has led the successful implementation of a 1:1 initiative, served on several school accreditation teams, and has served on several task forces for the state of Iowa to implement change in instructional and leadership policies and practices. Ellingson has gained national prominence in personalized learning and competency-based educational practices.

 

Ellingson has written articles for major national educational publications and is currently working on a book on professional development and collaboration while developing a superintendent preparation program. He has presented nationally on transformative change, leadership styles, competency-based education, and promising systems practices in education.

 

Congratulations to Jason on this great achievement!

Check out the following:

• Mark your calendars now!  On January 1, all members will receive access to 30 books on line - books like Essential Questions:  Opening Doors to Student Understanding by McTighe and Wiggins, Teaching with Tablets - How Do I Integrate Tablets with Effective Instruction by Fisher and Frey, and Teaching the Critical Vocabulary of the Common Core:  55 Words that Make or Break Student Understanding by Sprenger.
• Attention K-3 Teachers of Reading:  Be sure to see Nell Duke's article, "How Project-Based Approaches in Literacy Could Go Terribly Wrong . . . or Powerfully Right."
• Be sure to check out Ed Week's "Taking Stock of Personalized Learning"!
• Are you looking for great resources for educators?  Check out the Iowa Core website!
• Need more information on the Iowa Core Standards?  Check these out! 

 

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