Sinclair, Meredith N. (2013). Reading Experience: A Phenomenological Inquiry into Reading as "Not a Reader", ProQuest LLC. For many high school students, being "not a reader" means lack of engagement in school-based literacy activities, including reading and writing, and a subsequent lack of academic success. Most importantly, the "not a reader" identity often comes with a particular understanding of reading, one that is limited to information extraction from texts and creates an artificial divide between the activity of reading in classrooms and the activity of lived experience in the world. Using hermeneutic phenomenology as a frame of inquiry, this dissertation attempts to understand reading as "not a reader," through the lived experience of three African-American high-school age leavers in a community literacy program and the teacher/researcher. It explores the gap between what the students thought "doing narrative" meant, the way reading and writing were talked about in schools, and the way they actually "did narrative," their use of language both as writers/speakers and listeners/readers. As part of this exploration, this study questions the boundaries of reading as defined by common classroom activities and curriculum documents, including the Common Core State Standards, and the way these boundaries work to form the "not a reader" identity. Using the idea that dialogue is a fundamental human activity underlying our identity formation and our interactions with one another, this work explores possibilities for engaging "not a reader" students in reading as dialogue that bridge the divide between classroom reading and the students' lived experience. Drawing on Reader Response Theory, it offers an understanding of the activity of reading that suggests students must read texts in the world in order to engage in dialogue with them; that is, the texts themselves and the conversations around those texts must be rooted in the lived experience of the reader. Finally, this work seeks to offer insight into the type of curriculum that could allow for agency in reading, a curriculum that allows space for students to "talk back" to texts and produce meaning through dialogue with texts. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: www.proquest.com/en-US/products/disserta…   [More]  Descriptors: High School Students, African American Students, Community Programs, Literacy Education

US Department of Education (2013). Race to the Top. Georgia Report. Year 2: School Year 2011-2012. [State-Specific Summary Report]. This State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of Georgia's Year 2 Race to the Top implementation, highlighting successes and accomplishments, identifying challenges, and providing lessons learned from implementation from approximately September 2011 through September 2012. During Year 2, Georgia had a range of accomplishments across Race to the Top education reform areas. For example, Georgia completed two additional rounds of the Innovation Fund competitive grant program, awarding a total of 24 grants in Years 1 and 2. The State remains optimistic about the initiative and views the Innovation Fund as a way to stimulate new thinking about competitive grant funds for innovative education in Georgia. The Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) also provided all local educational agencies (LEAs) with a variety of resources (e.g., webinars, newsletters, and curriculum frameworks), professional development, and face-to-face support from English language arts (ELA) and mathematics specialists that will help them implement the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), referred to as the Common Core Georgia Performance Standards (CCGPS) in Georgia, in school year (SY) 2012-2013. Additionally, in moving forward with new and high-quality assessments, the State is developing a formative assessment toolkit. To ensure reliability, Georgia has field tested 800 assessment items using a representative sample of schools. Georgia experienced significant challenges related to implementation of its educator evaluation system in Year 2 of its Race to the Top grant. The Department is concerned about the overall strategic planning, evaluation, and project management for that system, which include decisions regarding the quality of the tools and measures used during the educator evaluation pilot and the scalability of the supports the State offered to participating LEAs. During Year 3, Georgia plans to develop rigorous routines and processes to better manage its Race to the Top projects and to more effectively monitor and assess participating LEAs' progress and quality of implementation. The State will also work with a consulting firm to enhance its communications plan to better articulate the various components of its Race to the Top initiative and how these components align. A glossary is included. (Contains 9 footnotes.) [For "Race to the Top. Georgia Report. Year 1: School Year 2010-2011. [State-Specific Summary Report]," see ED529314.]   [More]  Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Academic Standards, Accountability, Achievement Gap

US Department of Education (2013). Race to the Top. Tennessee Report. Year 2: School Year 2011-2012. [State-Specific Summary Report]. This State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of Tennessee's second year of Race to the Top implementation. The report highlights successes and accomplishments, identifies challenges, and provides lessons learned from implementation from approximately September 2011 through September 2012. During Year 2, the Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) revamped its approach to project management to ensure meaningful project oversight and revised project work plans and goals that focus on measuring project performance and impact at the State educational agency (SEA) level. The State also participated in partnership meetings with local educational agencies (LEAs) to build relationships focused on data and collaborative problem solving. These meetings reinforced the State's goal of transitioning from compliance monitoring to a more collaborative role as LEAs implemented their Race to the Top plans. Although Tennessee made excellent progress in Year 2, it still faced challenges as it rolled out the Tennessee Educator Acceleration Model (TEAM) and the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), built data systems to support instruction, and expanded its science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) network. Moving into Year 3 of its grant, Tennessee plans to build on its accomplishments and address its challenges from Year 2. The State is reassessing its implementation plans in several reform areas to ensure continuous improvement and effective implementation. For example, the State is making changes to its educator evaluation system to address feedback from teachers and principals. In addition, TDOE is enhancing its existing Field Service Centers (FSCs) to provide content-specific supports to LEAs and schools. The FSCs will now be called Centers of Regional Excellence (COREs) and will leverage the existing strengths of FSCs and add additional capacities to provide support to LEAs as they implement the CCSS and the new evaluation system. The State's plans for Years 3 and 4 rely heavily on effective CORE implementation, highlighting the need for the State to establish high-quality centers and mechanisms to assess their effectiveness. A glossary is included. (Contains 20 footnotes.) [For "Race to the Top. Tennessee Report. Year 1: School Year 2010-2011. [State-Specific Summary Report]," see ED529330.]   [More]  Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Academic Standards, Accountability, Achievement Gap

Sharma, Anu (2013). Associations between Self-Efficacy Beliefs, Self-Regulated Learning Strategies, and Students' Performance on Model-Eliciting Tasks: An Examination of Direct and Indirect Effects, ProQuest LLC. Mathematics education currently emphasizes engaging students in mathematical modeling to understand problems of everyday life and society (Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), 2010; English & Sriraman, 2010; Lesh & Zawojewski, 2007). The Common Core State Standards for mathematics also stress that high school students should develop understanding of algebra, functions, statistics, and geometry in conjunction with modeling (CCSSO, 2010). A review of mathematical modeling literature indicated a lack of information regarding which contextual factors impact students' success in solving modeling activities. The present study attempts to fill this gap by examining associations between self-efficacy beliefs, self-regulated learning strategies (e.g., cognitive and metacognitive strategy use), and students' performance in modeling tasks. Self-efficacy beliefs were measured by developing a new instrument, Modeling Self-Efficacy scale. Data for participants' self-reported use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies were gathered through their responses on the modified version of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (Kaya, 2007). Modeling outcomes were measured in terms of students' success in solving six modeling problems. These problems were adapted from the PISA 2003 problem-solving assessment. The confirmatory factor analysis indicated an acceptable fit of the data with the hypothesized measurement model. The structural model tested using Structural Equation Modeling techniques suggested that perceived modeling self-efficacy beliefs (Ãü = 0.50, p < 0.001) directly and positively predicted students' performance in solving modeling problems. However, organization strategy use (Ãü = -0.62, p < 0.05) had a significant negative direct effect on students' modeling success. The direct effects of students' use of critical thinking (Ãü = -0.59, p = 0.08), elaboration (Ãü = 0.40, p = 0.41), and metacognitive strategies (Ãü = 0.46, p = 0.16) on their performance in solving modeling tasks were non-significant. Also, indirect effects of students' self-efficacy beliefs on modeling task success through their effect on their use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies were non-significant. The implications for future research along with limitations of this study are discussed. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: www.proquest.com/en-US/products/disserta…   [More]  Descriptors: Mathematics Education, Mathematical Models, Self Efficacy, Learning Strategies

Venezia, Andrea; Jaeger, Laura (2013). Transitions from High School to College, Future of Children. The vast majority of high school students aspire to some kind of postsecondary education, yet far too many of them enter college without the basic content knowledge, skills, or habits of mind they need to succeed. Andrea Venezia and Laura Jaeger look at the state of college readiness among high school students, the effectiveness of programs in place to help them transition to college, and efforts to improve those transitions. Students are unprepared for postsecondary coursework for many reasons, the authors write, including differences between what high schools teach and what colleges expect, as well as large disparities between the instruction offered by high schools with high concentrations of students in poverty and that offered by high schools with more advantaged students. The authors also note the importance of noncurricular variables, such as peer influences, parental expectations, and conditions that encourage academic study. Interventions to improve college readiness offer a variety of services, from academic preparation and information about college and financial aid, to psychosocial and behavioral supports, to the development of habits of mind including organizational skills, anticipation, persistence, and resiliency. The authors also discuss more systemic programs, such as Middle College High Schools, and review efforts to allow high school students to take college classes (known as dual enrollment). Evaluations of the effectiveness of these efforts are limited, but the authors report that studies of precollege support programs generally show small impacts, while the more systemic programs show mixed results. Dual-enrollment programs show promise, but the evaluation designs may overstate the results. The Common Core State Standards, a voluntary set of goals and expectations in English and math adopted by most states, offer the potential to improve college and career readiness, the authors write. But that potential will be realized, they add, only if the standards are supplemented with the necessary professional development to enable educators to help all students meet academic college readiness standards, a focus on developing strong noncognitive knowledge and skills for all students, and the information and supports to help students prepare and select the most appropriate postsecondary institution.   [More]  Descriptors: Transitional Programs, Postsecondary Education, College Preparation, College Readiness

McMurrer, Jennifer; Frizzell, Matthew (2013). Career Readiness Assessments across States: A Summary of Survey Findings, Center on Education Policy. The notion of what it means for a student to be "career-ready" is changing as a result of the recent push by the federal and state governments to ensure that all students are prepared for college and careers by the time they graduate from high school. While much attention has been paid to the "college-ready" aspect of college and career readiness, the term "career-ready" still means different things to different people. Although many state departments of education are currently engaged in defining career readiness and determining how best to measure it, the differences in the scope and complexity of those definitions are significant. Unfortunately, the information available about how states and school districts are defining career readiness and which assessments they are using to measure a varied set of career-related skills is scant and often confusing. It is equally difficult to obtain a coherent understanding of which kinds of career-related skills each assessment measures and how states and districts are using the results of the assessments to evaluate student readiness. This report by the Center on Education Policy (CEP) describes how states are defining career readiness and which assessments states and districts are using to measure this attribute. The report is based on a survey administered in the summer of 2013 to state directors of career and technical education (CTE) or their designees about career readiness assessments. A total of 46 states completed the survey. (The District of Columbia is counted as a state in the tallies in this report.) Key findings included: (1) Only 14 of the 46 states responding to the survey have a statewide definition of what it means for high school students to be career- or work-ready; (2) States and their school districts are using various assessments to gauge career readiness; and (3) In many states, school districts or students, not the state, pay the costs associated with taking CTE exams; (4) More states use student results on career readiness assessments to meet federal reporting requirements than use them to make school accountability decisions; (5) Nearly all (45) of the survey states reported facing challenges in assessing high school students' career education or their level of career readiness; and (6) The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) have had little impact thus far on the way that career and technical education skills are assessed. An appendix discusses study methods.   [More]  Descriptors: Career Readiness, Educational Assessment, College Readiness, Job Skills

Orona, Cynthia C. (2013). Efficacy and Utility Beliefs of Mothers and Children as Predictors of Mathematics Achievement for American Indian Students, ProQuest LLC. American Indians have the largest high school dropout rates of all ethnic groups in the United States. Though drop outs technically occur in high school, they actually begin with lowered academic achievement during elementary school years. Looking to mothers as the primary caretakers, this study sought to explore the correlations between American Indian mothers' and their 5th grade children's mathematics efficacy beliefs and utility values–to see if these beliefs and values could predict children's mathematics achievement. Particularly when it comes to mathematics, American Indian mothers are dually challenged to encourage their children's success in school because of (1) generalized school disconnect due to negative boarding school experiences and (2) limited understanding about how to assist children's success in mathematics as it is currently being taught. School mathematics lessons are different from those lessons mothers experienced when they were in school. New Common Core State Standards for Mathematics may contribute to mothers' disconnect. The purpose of this explanatory correlational research study was to determine the extent to which the relationship between American Indian students' and mothers' mathematical efficacy beliefs and utility values for mathematics influence student's mathematical achievement. This study, component to a larger National Science Foundation (NSF) project study (Award No. HRD-0936672), utilized data from 148 mother-child dyads. Participant children attended one of 23 rural, public schools in northeastern Oklahoma that included high American Indian student populations. The data included participants' responses to the Fennema-Sherman Mathematical Attitudes Survey (FSMAS) and children's mathematics achievement results from the Oklahoma Core Curriculum Test. Study results indicated that, although mothers mathematical efficacy belief and utility value for mathematics influenced their children's mathematical efficacy belief and utility value for mathematics, only a mother's utility value for mathematics significantly predicted children's mathematical achievement. In addition, children's own mathematical efficacy belief and utility value for mathematics was not predictive of their mathematical achievement. This research improves our understanding of the influence of parents, particularly mothers of American Indian children and can help guide supportive parent involvement in mathematics education efforts. Implications of this research relate to both theory and practice. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: www.proquest.com/en-US/products/disserta…   [More]  Descriptors: American Indian Education, Mother Attitudes, Predictor Variables, Mathematics Achievement

Helvenston, Susan S. (2013). The State of Professional Development for Teachers of Beginning Readers in Florida's Rural Schools, ProQuest LLC. This study reviews the state of professional development (PD) for teachers of beginning readers in Florida's rural schools. Teachers of beginning readers need to have a deep understanding of language, of how the reading process develops, and of effective pedagogy in early literacy. Few teachers begin their careers with sufficient knowledge and skills to be effective in teaching children how to read. Prior research demonstrates the importance of high quality PD for helping teachers develop the necessary knowledge and skills and also provides frameworks for evaluating effectiveness of PD activities. This study was conducted using prior research and frameworks of PD as a foundation. The study used a mixed-mode survey technique that included an online survey, telephone contacts, and face-to-face interviews for non-responders. Public elementary schools (n = 118) that serve students in kindergarten, first, second, and third grades in all 28 of Florida's designated rural districts were invited to participate. A total of 84 schools responded to the survey making the total response rate 71.18%. Telephone calls to schools that volunteered to answer additional questions were made regarding trends in results. Results indicated the primary focus of PD for the 2012-2013 school year was on Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Although schools reported using effective PD delivery methods, many other features of PD activities were inadequate. In particular, far too little time was devoted to PD to produce sustainable changes, and the narrow focus on CCSS meant that teachers' needs for increased knowledge and skills about the reading process went unmet. The lack of collective participation was also noted, as was the limited use of technology to address the inherent difficulties in providing PD in rural areas. Follow-up interviews indicated that time and money were the most common barriers to effective PD implementation. Interviews also revealed that rural schools have inherent advantages (e.g., a strong sense of community and commitment) over urban and suburban schools. These advantages are perceived to mitigate challenges. The study's findings are discussed in relation to prior research. A discussion of the study's limitations, its implications for policy, practice, and future research, is also provided. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: www.proquest.com/en-US/products/disserta…   [More]  Descriptors: Faculty Development, Beginning Reading, Elementary School Students, Elementary School Teachers

Wolf, Nancy Butler (2013). Teachers' Understanding of and Concerns about Mathematical Modeling in the Common Core Standards, ProQuest LLC. Educational reform is most likely to be successful when teachers are knowledgeable about the intended reform, and when their concerns about the reform are understood and addressed. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) is an effort to establish a set of nationwide expectations for students and teachers. This study examined teacher understanding of and concerns about mathematical modeling–one of the eight mathematical practice standards in the CCSS. A researcher-developed survey was used combining items from an instrument assessing teachers' understanding of the CCSS with an instrument measuring teacher concerns about curriculum reform. Items specific to mathematical modeling, as well as demographic and open-ended questions, were used to augment these items. Data were collected from 364 teachers in grades K through 12 in eight California school districts. Statistical analysis was used to determine relationships between key variables and teacher concerns and factors that contribute to level of teacher understanding. Interviews of selected participants were conducted to augment quantitative data. Statistical analyses employed included descriptive statistics to determine teachers' understanding of mathematical modeling and willingness to change practice, logistic regression to determine which variables were significant predictors of understanding and to predict group membership regarding understanding of modeling, and factor analysis to determine variables related to teacher concerns about modeling. Multiple regressions were run using resulting factors to determine variables contributing to understanding of modeling. Path analysis was conducted to determine variables that contributed to implementation of modeling in the classroom. Results of the survey and interviews demonstrate that most teachers surveyed understand mathematical modeling and are willing to change their practice to include modeling. The Stages of Concern instrument demonstrated that, at this early stage of CCSS implementation, teachers express, primarily, concerns about "self," including time, available materials, and professional development. Further analysis demonstrates that professional development is a key variable in successful transition to the CCSS. Analysis of the results of the survey, as well as the interviews with selected teachers, produced implications for professional development in the transition to the CCSS. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: www.proquest.com/en-US/products/disserta…   [More]  Descriptors: Elementary School Teachers, Secondary School Teachers, Mathematical Models, State Standards

Huang, Amy I-Yu (2013). Developing Multiplicative Thinking with Rectangular Array Tasks in a Computer Environment, ProQuest LLC. This study reports findings from a teaching experiment in which 4th grade children engaged in solving multiplication tasks with rectangular arrays in a computer environment. The environment provided flexible task-solving through dynamic virtual manipulatives (VMs) so children could use their existing knowledge of multiplication to complete array tasks in a variety of ways appropriate to their level of development. I hypothesized that children's multiplicative thinking, consisting of the counting scheme (Steffe, 1994) and splitting structure (Confrey, 1994), could advance through what I called insights, which arose when students hit an impasse which resulted in strategy revision. This study described the actions four children took to solve tasks. Findings suggested that the array tasks, the computer environment, array VMs, and verbal prompts helped children develop multiplicative thinking through engaging in multiple pathways to solution including either or both counting and splitting actions. Results showed the students were able to solve the tasks correctly and all four children experienced impasses and two resolved them with insights. Two children demonstrated advancements in multiplicative thinking and counting solution strategies were used by more children than splitting strategies. Successful task-solving with arrays appeared to include three important types of thinking: 1) Developing an awareness of the dimensions of the array; 2) Decomposing or splitting larger portions of the original array; and 3) Manipulating the numbers in the array. Findings suggest that children work in an intermediate space between repeated addition and memorized facts that includes the counting and splitting constructs. In this space, they can face impasses as they work with large factors in new computer environments but these environments can also provide helpful constraints, giving children insight opportunities to restructure their initial depictions of the problem to manipulate arrays to match the multiplication facts they know. Findings have implications on the Common Core State Standards for 4th grade mathematics, the use of visual representations and computer environments in the classroom, and current multiplication curriculum. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: www.proquest.com/en-US/products/disserta…   [More]  Descriptors: Grade 4, Multiplication, Problem Solving, Elementary School Mathematics

US Department of Education (2013). Race to the Top. Hawaii Report. Year 2: School Year 2011-2012. [State-Specific Summary Report]. This State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of Hawaii's Year 2 Race to the Top implementation, highlighting successes and accomplishments, identifying challenges, and providing lessons learned from implementation from approximately September 2011 through September 2012. During Year 2, Hawaii worked to revise its Race to the Top plan to align with approved amendments and accelerate its forward trajectory in response to the Department placing the State's grant on high-risk status. The Hawaii Department of Education (HIDOE) central office reorganized in January 2012, drafted a new Strategic Plan, and revised program-specific communications plans. In March 2012, HIDOE began planning and training to establish Academic Review Teams (ARTs) in each Complex Area and school for SY 2012-2013. While the State took several steps in the right direction following its designation as a high-risk grantee, Hawaii continues to face challenges and delays. HIDOE developed a new strategic plan, which delayed the creation of metrics to measure progress against the Race to the Top plan and the strategic plan at the State, Complex Area, and school levels. In addition, after a one-year delay, the State is only in the beginning phases of creating systematic structures and processes to gather information about implementation from schools and Complex Areas. Now called Academic Review Teams (ARTs), these structures have additional importance in the Zones of School Innovation (ZSI) where HIDOE is piloting many new strategies. In Year 3, Hawaii will make routine new performance management and monitoring processes, as well as changes to its communications plan. The State will continue its transition to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) by vetting curricular materials to inform statewide purchases, providing job-embedded professional development for all teachers, and monitoring CCSS implementation using new tools. The State will also pilot a new principal evaluation system. Finally, under a one-year supplemental agreement, students in the ZSI will benefit from extended learning time and educators will have additional professional development days. A glossary is included. (Contains 7 footnotes.) [For "Race to the Top. Hawaii Report. Year 1: School Year 2010-2011. [State-Specific Summary Report]," see ED529316.]   [More]  Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Academic Standards, Accountability, Achievement Gap

Gallagher, Kathleen L. (2013). Performance Assessment for Quality Teaching: Three Critical Variables for Measuring and Improving Teaching and Learning, ProQuest LLC. While outstanding teachers are any school system's most important investment, assessing the quality of instructional practice has proven to be an ongoing challenge for the profession. Despite assertions that effective teachers are the single most important school-related factor responsible for increased learning, no teacher's employment is dependent on their performance in the classroom or the quality of instruction that they provide. This problem has fueled a growing mistrust in school districts nationwide, specifically in the area of teacher evaluation. One possible explanation is that the profession lacks the scaled level of expertise needed to evaluate instruction consistently and in a manner that effectively informs the improvement process. In an effort to both strengthen the teacher evaluation process and significantly improve the quality of instruction in classrooms, an observation instrument was developed which measures the critical skills associated with highly effective teaching. These include a teacher's content knowledge, pedagogical expertise, and the ability to establish a classroom culture conducive to sustained learning. The instrument is also consistent with the new Common Core State Standards, and defines quality as the level at which a teacher facilitates multi-directional interactions with the class that result in authentic cognitive engagement and increased subject matter competence. An important distinguishing factor is the instrument's focus on student outcomes related to participation, critical thinking, and academic language as opposed to traditional observations, which focus on teacher behaviors. The study had both quantitative and qualitative components. Multilevel modeling techniques were used to examine the effects of instructional quality on student growth. trajectories in English and math in two California middle schools. The effects proved both positive and significant in both subject areas, but particularly in mathematics where one standard deviation of instructional quality produced an 11-point gain on the California Standards Test. A cross-case narrative analysis also identified the actions taken by teachers that resulted in the highest and lowest levels of instructional quality. Contributions of this study include an efficient model for evaluating instructional effectiveness, methods for informing and differentiating professional development, and an increased understanding of whether or not all students have access to high quality instruction. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: www.proquest.com/en-US/products/disserta…   [More]  Descriptors: Teacher Evaluation, Teacher Improvement, Teacher Effectiveness, Measures (Individuals)

Swan, Kathy; Griffin, Susan (2013). Beating the Odds: The College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards, Social Education. When the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards project began, there really was nowhere else to go but up. The project was up against great odds–a dearth of funding, a history of incivility amongst the disciplines within social studies, a knack for ending up in media battles over what should be taught in a social studies curriculum, a lack of disciplinary and interdisciplinary coherence within previous social studies standards documents, and the list went on. In the first couple of months, one of the more optimistic colleagues on the C3 project gave the work about a 30 percent chance of success. He wasn't that far off. At the time this project began, the Common Core State Standards reform movement was sweeping the country. The majority of states had formally adopted the new standards in English Language Arts and Mathematics emphasizing a "fewer, higher, clearer" approach to K-12 education. That action created tremors within the social studies community that they could be further squeezed out of the curriculum. By January 2010, a few months before the Common Core Standards were officially published, two groups were meeting concurrently to discuss the critical state of social studies education. The Social Studies Assessment, Curriculum and Instruction (SSACI) is a state collaborative within the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) made up of state-level social studies consultants, assessment experts, and administrative personnel who are on the front lines of adoption and implementation of standards within their states. The meetings of these groups provided a forum for examining the current needs and issues facing the states and allowed state education agencies to draw from a greater pool of experience. Work on the C3 Framework began in the fall of 2010 with the development of a conceptual guidance document written by individuals from the Social Studies Assessment, Curriculum and Instruction state collaborative and representatives from the Task Force. This article summarizes a number of these foundational ideas that provided a common frame of reference and became a guide to the writers of the C3 Framework. It also describes what social studies teachers can do right now to help implement the C3 Framework.   [More]  Descriptors: Social Studies, State Standards, Interdisciplinary Approach, Cooperative Programs

Relles, Stefani R.; Tierney, William G. (2013). The Challenge of Writing Remediation: Can Composition Research Inform Higher Education Policy?, Teachers College Record. Background/Context: This article presents a review of research relevant to postsecondary writing remediation. The purpose of the review is to assess empirical support for policy aimed at improving the degree completion rates of students who arrive at tertiary settings underprepared to write. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study: Our purpose is to bridge composition studies for a higher education policy audience. Our agenda is to offer a balanced portrait of disciplinary literature framed for organizational decision-making that can improve graduation rates. The research question that guides inquiry is: How can writing and composition research inform remediation policy to increase college-going success? Research Design: This is a critical synthesis of prior conceptual and empirical work. We first provide a historical perspective to explicate important disciplinary issues that may be unfamiliar to a policy audience. We then present a critical synthesis of the disciplinary-based literature from two viewpoints. The first involves rhetorical frames that are related, but have significant conceptual differences. The second considers student achievement, attainment, and developmental outcomes. Findings/Results: The review comprehensively demonstrates the seriousness and scope of policy problems perpetuated by two obstacles. The first is a lack of clarity on what constitutes college writing. The second is a dearth of assessment tools with which to measure writing aptitude. The incongruities between standards and assessment of college writing have resulted in a body of research that does not provide the kind of evidentiary support weighted in policy discussions. Both issues require attention if writing remediation policy is to be improved. Conclusions/Recommendations: The review suggests that writing remediation policy and programs will remain accountable to the rhetorical and paradigmatic viewpoints that dominate writing assessment and that relegate underprepared students to dubious degree pathways. The negative implications of the review for college writing preparation are discussed in the context of the K-12 Common Core State Standards. Recommendations are tendered for an interdisciplinary agenda to increase the educational opportunities of underprepared writers and decrease the social inequities associated with remediation policies and programs.   [More]  Descriptors: College Students, Higher Education, Writing Instruction, Writing Evaluation

US Department of Education (2013). Race to the Top. Massachusetts Report. Year 2: School Year 2011-2012. [State-Specific Summary Report]. The State-specific summary report serves as an assessment of Massachusetts' Year 2 Race to the Top implementation, highlighting successes and accomplishments, identifying challenges, and providing lessons learned from implementation from approximately September 2011 through September 2012. In Year 2, Massachusetts continued to implement strong systems to track progress of projects, assess risk, and provide support of project implementation as needed. The State fully implemented project management structures through the Delivery approach, which regularly assesses project progress and identifies potential problems based on predetermined goals and objectives. The Delivery process allows for a candid assessment of project risks and timely application of action plans for projects that may be getting off track. The State demonstrated a strong understanding of its progress and the areas that required additional support. Additionally, the State proactively collaborated with key stakeholders throughout the development of major components of its Race to the Top reform efforts, which resulted in greater buy-in from educators during implementation. While Massachusetts has put concerted time and resources into efforts to implement the schools interoperability framework (SIF) in order to improve the data collection process, there continued to be significant delays in this project. The State fell short of meeting its performance measure for this project for the first two years of the grant. In SY 2011-2012, the State reported that 100 percent of local educational agencies (LEAs) implemented the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), which are incorporated into the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for English Language Arts and the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics. LEAs faced challenges finalizing local collective bargaining agreements in time to prepare for implementation of educator evaluation systems in SY 2012-2013. The State reported in October 2012 that 88 of the 236 participating LEAs had ESE-approved evaluation system plans that align with the State's regulations. Massachusetts plans to fully implement the 2011 Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks, which incorporate the CCSS, in Year 3. In addition, all Race to the Top participating LEAs will implement new educator evaluation systems. The State will continue to develop data systems and curricular materials that support these initiatives and will provide further guidance to LEAs as they roll out their new curricula and evaluations. A glossary is included. (Contains 11 footnotes.) [For "Race to the Top. Massachusetts Report. Year 1: School Year 2010-2011. [State-Specific Summary Report]," see ED529318.   [More]  Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Academic Standards, Accountability, Achievement Gap