New standards and assessments develop the skills students need to be ready for college and careers

How do we know students are learning what they need to succeed at each grade level? How will we know they are ready for college and careers after high school graduation?

In schools across the country, teachers are implementing academic standards in English and math at each grade level. These guidelines, or Common Core State Standards, challenge students to develop a deeper understanding of subjects, learn how to think critically and apply what they are learning to the workplace and in life.

This spring, students in grades three through eight, 10 and 11 will take the Smarter Balanced Assessment, which has been designed to assess attainment of Common Core State Standards. SBA will replace existing state tests in English language arts/literacy and mathematics.

“This is about preparing students throughout their schooling to be college- and/or career-ready,” said Layne Stampfli, director of curriculum and instruction. “We start at the beginning with kindergarten readiness and then build from there to make sure our students are learning what they need to know at each grade level to ensure post-secondary success. These assessments will help us monitor student progress toward our goal of college and career readiness for each and every graduate.”

Developed with input from K-12 educators, higher education faculty and research experts, the SBAs allow students to demonstrate problem-solving skills through writing and performance tasks. Performance tasks challenge students to apply their knowledge and skills to complex real-world problems. Questions and activities on the assessment are meant to measure students’ depth of understanding, writing and research skills and complex analysis—a key component of college and career readiness.

SBA is more than a year-end test. The assessment provides teachers and parents with better information to help students succeed. Teachers can access tools that help them check in on student progress throughout the year. Optional interim assessments help teachers plan and improve instruction.

Another benefit of SBA is the buy-in from higher education. Washington public colleges, including community and technical colleges, have endorsed agreements offering graduating seniors from the classes of 2016 through 2018 the opportunity to use their 11th-grade SBA scores for placement in college-level coursework. A potential cost-savings for students and families can be realized by eliminating the need for remedial, noncredit college courses.

In Vancouver Public Schools additional measures of success accompany the SBA. The district is raising its expectations of rigor in middle school math, and paying close attention to key student transitions, learning environments and achievement gaps.

“When we measure the overall performance of the district, we get a much broader picture of student learning,” said Dr. Mike Stromme, associate superintendent for teaching and learning. “We know we have room for growth. We also have a lot of new work to incorporate to help us get there: the new teacher and principal evaluation program, Common Core State Standards and new graduation requirements. These are positive changes that will help us set new learning expectations. We’re committed.”

To learn more about CCSS and SBA:

vimeo.com/channels/511746

cgcs.org/cgcs

smarterbalanced.org

This and other stories originally appeared in the January 2015 issue of Inside Vancouver Public Schools.