Department Chair Meeting Session #1

1. Department Chair MeetingSession #1 Sebastian Oddone District Supervisor Yoly McCarthy Curriculum Specialist

2. Goals for This Session • Review State updates • Course Description Review • Common Core Standards/ NGSS • Miami Dade County Department Chair Information • Data and interim assessments • Reading in Science • Reflections

3. Introductions Tell us • Who you are? • What school you are from? • Are you a new or experienced department chair? • Something positive (brief) from your school that you would like to share

4. Senate Bill 4- Revises s. 1003.428, F.S., General Requirements for HS Graduation Think Pair Share • In your group, read the Senate Bill 4 Implementation Update • Choose 5 important highlights to report out • Write them down on chart paper and present.

5. State Updates • The Biology EOC exam will count for 30% of final grade for all 10th grade students taking Biology I Regular or Honors courses during the 2012-13 school year (9th grade cohort of 2011-2012) • Beginning with 9th 2012-2013 cohort a passing score on the Biology, Algebra I, and Geometry EOCs will be required (or equivalent score?) for graduation • If the EOCs are not passed, students will be able to retake until a passing grade is achieved.

6. Senate Bill 4- Revises s. 1003.428, F.S., General Requirements for HS Graduation • . …Beginning with the cohort of students entering grade nine in the 2012–2013 school year, in addition to the Algebra 1 and Geometry credit requirements, one of the four credits in mathematics must be an Algebra 2 or equivalent course. • …Beginning with the cohort of students entering grade nine in the 2011–2012 school year, one of the three credits in science must be a Biology 1 or equivalent course and the EOC assessment requirements must be met in order for the student to earn the required credit in Biology 1. It also requires that, beginning with students entering grade nine in the 2013–2014 school year, one of the three science credits must be Biology 1 or equivalent courses, one must be chemistry or physics or equivalent courses, and one must be an equally rigorous science course.

7. Senate Bill 4- Revises s. 1003.428, F.S., General Requirements for HS Graduation QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS If a secondary student has not been enrolled in or completed a course but passes the corresponding EOC assessment, will that student receive high school credit for that course? Yes. When may a secondary student be allowed to take a standardized EOC assessment in a particular course? After EOC assessment cut scores have been determined, a secondary student must be allowed to take an EOC assessment for a particular course during any regular administration of that EOC assessment. May an elementary student in an accelerated/gifted program take a standardized EOC assessment and receive high school credit without being enrolled in or completing that course? Senate Bill 4 establishes the Credit Acceleration Program (CAP) for “secondary students.” Students in grades K–5 are not eligible to participate in CAP.

8. Senate Bill 4- Revises s. 1003.428, F.S., General Requirements for HS Graduation Require the statewide assessment program to transition from comprehensive assessments of mathematics in grades nine and ten to EOC assessments measuring the course content of Algebra 1 and Geometry. o The Algebra 1 course grade of students entering grade nine in 2010–2011 must include the performance on the Algebra 1 EOC Assessment (30 percent weighting). Students entering grade nine in 2011–2012 must pass the Algebra 1 EOC Assessment to earn course credit. o The Geometry course grade of students entering grade nine in 2011–2012 must include the performance on the Geometry EOC Assessment (30 percent weighting). Students entering grade nine in 2012–2013 must pass the Geometry EOC Assessment to earn course credit. Require the statewide assessment program to transition from a comprehensive assessment of science in grade 11 to an EOC assessment measuring the course content of Biology. o The Biology course grade of students entering grade nine in 2011–2012 must include the performance on the Biology 1 EOC Assessment (30 percent weighting). Students entering grade nine in 2012–2013 must pass the Biology 1 EOC Assessment to earn course credit. Require the Commissioner to develop an implementation schedule for the development and administration of additional EOC assessments in English/Language Arts II, Algebra II, Chemistry, Physics, Earth/Space Science, United States History, and World History, subject to funding availability. The priority must be given to English/Language Arts II.

9. State UpdatesAverages for Biology

10. State UpdatesCut scores/ Levels • Cut scores/ ALDS (Achievement Level descriptions) for biology EOC have not been determined as of yet • “At this time, Achievement Levels have only been established for the Algebra 1 EOC Assessment; they will be established for the Geometry and Biology 1 EOC Assessments in Spring 2013, for the U.S. History EOC Assessment in Spring 2014, and for the Civics EOC Assessment in Spring 2015.”- http://fcat.fldoe.org/fcat2/pdf/achlevel.pdf

11. Trends to Look for in Biology EOC*Need to keep in consideration that what is considered passing has not been determined yet when looking for patterns. When levels 1-5 are broken down, the patterns may change.

12. Top Schools in FL

13. Broken Down by Grade Level 9th

14. Broken Down by Grade Level 10th

15. Bottom Schools in FL

16. County Comparisons with Miami Dade

17. More Evidence for Trend Use

18. Break….

19. Course Description Review • NEW 2012-2013 Course Descriptions for all courses found online at CPALMS: http://www.cpalms.org/Courses/CourseDescriptionSearch.aspx • 68 benchmarks have been grouped according to 22 Annually Assessed (AA) benchmarks • Nature of Science benchmarks are embedded throughout the AA benchmarks • Common Core Embedded throughout

20. Pacing Guides: The District Curriculum • Review of Pacing Guides (Year at a Glance) • The outline of the Pacing Guides • Correlation to the course descriptions • Discuss with your group your findings • Present back the “Aha” moments from your groups GROUP ACTIVITY

21. Pacing Guides: The District Curriculum • REVISED to reflect the new course descriptions • Biology now built around the 22 annually assessed benchmarks and the item specifications • Available through the Learning Village in the teacher portal • Aligned to new textbooks adopted for this year

22. Pacing Guides: The District Curriculum • Biology Revamp • Research based (Framework for K-12 Science Education, Project 2061, etc.) • Based on concrete to abstract progression and macro (real world) to micro (abstract) sequence • Content in Biology all review from middle school but more in depth

23. Benchmarks and Item Specifications • NGSSS Benchmarks adopted in 2008 for all science courses • Separated by Bodies of Knowledge (Life, Physical, Earth space, Nature of Science) • Only Biology has item specifications for EOC. No item specs planned for other high school course (that we know of) • Purpose of Item Specs to provide specific content and format instructions to EOC test creators • Good tool for Biology teachers

24. Item Specifications

25. Middle School Foundational Benchmarks • Previously learned content knowledge from K-8 will be considered “Fair Game” • Students could be tested in any previous content knowledge K-8 • Teachers must be aware on what knowledge is considered “Fair Game” • http://science.dadeschools.net/highSchool/ScienceEOC.htm

26. Middle School Foundational Benchmarks

27. Student Progression in High School • Physical Science (9th) • Biology (10th) • Chemistry or Physics (11th) • If a student already completed the 9th grade and or the 10th grade course in Middle school, then that student should continue along the progression. • If a student comes from another district or private school with Earth and Space science (honors in MS) as their 9th grade equivalent, that student may continue along the progression (passing score, etc.)

28. Vertical Articulation in High School • Make sure teachers are aware of the content/concepts that are addressed in each subject before and after their current year • Avoid re-teaching the same idea over and over and year-to-year, this ends up having the opposite effect we intend • Address prior knowledge by incorporating into the specific subject area and engage students by raising expectations and promoting HOTS. • Students often will say they never learned anything before they stepped into your class… • Encourage communication and sharing of best practices among teachers in your department

29. High School Science News(from the Science Webcast) • Higher Order Thinking (HOT) Labs: The purpose of the Physical Science, Biology, and Chemistry HOT Labs is to ensure all students are provided benchmark driven instruction of the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards through a laboratory/hands on experience. The use of this document is recommend in all Physical Science, Biology, and Chemistry classrooms and it can be found at www.science.dadeschools.net and the Learning Village • Science best practices: • Encourage science instruction that is aligned to the M-DCPS district pacing guides. • Encourage science instruction that promotes the implementation of a minimum of at least one lab/week. • Encourage science instruction that utilizes Quarterly Science Benchmark assessment (QSBA) and that uses the data to drive teaching and learning. • Encourage student participation in the Regional Science and Engineering Fair and SECME competitions. • Encourage your science instructors to participate in the District Professional Development of the above listed items.

30. Biology EOC Reporting Categories • Molecular and Cellular Biology (35%) • Classification, Heredity, and Evolution (25% ) • Organisms, Populations, and Ecosystems (40%)

34. The Nature of Science SC.912.N.1.1 (Also assesses SC.912.N.1.4, SC.912.N.1.6, SC.912.L.14.4, LA.910.2.2.3, LA.910.4.2.2, MA.912.S.1.2, and MA.912.S.3.2) Annually Assessed benchmark but does not belong to one specific reporting category and is addressed in all three

35. Difficulty Level vs. • The difficulty of test items is initially estimated by committees of educators and later determined by question performance based on the following: • Easy - More than 70 percent of the students respond correctly. • Average - Between 40 percent and 70 percent of the students are respond correctly. • Challenging - Less than 40 percent of the students respond correctly.

36. Cognitive Complexity • The cognitive complexity of a test item describes the demand an item makes on a based on Dr. Norman L. Webb’s Depth of Knowledge (DOK) levels • Percentage points on the EOC will be distributed as follows: • Low Complexity - 10%–20% • Moderate Complexity - 60%–80% • High Complexity - 10%–20%

37. A marine food web is shown below. • Which of the following organisms is a consumer in this food web? • A. Seaweed • B. Sea Grass • C. Clam Worm • D. Phytoplankton

38. A marine food web is shown below. • Which of the following is a long-term effect on the removal of the redfish from the ecosystem represented by this food web? • A. The osprey population will increase. • B. The amphipod population will increase. • C. The clam worm population will increase. • D. The phytoplankton population will increase.

39. Lunch time… • Please be back an hour from now • Try to carpool to avoid congestion • Fast food restaurants around…

40. CPALMS • Presentation on the use of CPALMS as a resource for lessons and content for Florida teachers http://www.cpalms.org • iCPALMS (individualized platform) • visualizer to analyze data • Progression Map • CMAP

41. Discovery Education Resources Presentation by Amy Groper For Title I and Non-Title I Schools

42. Common Core Standards • The Common Core State Standards Initiative is a state-led effort coordinated by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). The standards were developed in collaboration with teachers, school administrators, and experts, to provide a clear and consistent framework to prepare our children for college and the workforce.

43. Common Core Shifts for ELA/Literacy • Complexity: The standards require regular practice with complex text and its academic language • Evidence: The standards emphasize reading and writing grounded in evidence from text, both literary and informational • Knowledge: The standards require building knowledge through content rich non-fiction

44. Common Core Shifts for Mathematics • Focus: The standards focus in on the key content, skills and practices at each grade level • Coherence: Content in the standards builds across the grades, and major topics are linked within grades • Rigor: In major topics, the standards highlight conceptual understanding, procedural skill and fluency, and application

45. Common Core Standards Questions to consider: • What are the Common Core Standards? • How will they affect the science classroom? • What accountability is in place for these standards?

46. Language Arts and Math Embedded into science course descriptions and now pacing guides • Group Activity: Choose one of the common core standards and create/describe an activity that reflect the incorporation of the standard into a Science lesson. Present out to the group

47. Common Core Standards “CCSS is a change in behavior, requiring students to think, problem solve, and support their positions, making life long learners…creating the habit of learning and seeking knowledge on their own” • Integration of Math and Language Arts benchmarks • PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers)

48. PARCC Assessments • Assessed in years 3-10 • Will replace the FCAT 2.0 • CCSS will not be tested on the Biology EOC • Timeline • 2010-11 School Year: Launch and design phase • 2011-12 School Year: Development begins • 2012-13 School Year: First year pilot/field testing and related research and data collection • 2013-14 School Year: Second year pilot/field testing and related research and data collection • 2014-15 School Year: Full operational administration of PARCC assessments • Summer 2015: Set achievement levels, including college-ready performance levels

49. NGSS(Next Generation Science Standards) • Step One: Getting the Science Right The National Research Council (NRC), the staff arm of the National Academy of Sciences, began by developing the Framework for K–12 Science Education. • Step Two: States Developing Next Generation Science Standards In a process managed by Achieve, states will lead the development of K–12 science standards, rich in content and practice, arranged in a coherent manner across disciplines and grades to provide all students an internationally-benchmarked science education.

50. NGSS(Next Generation Science Standards) Process for Developing Next Generation Science Standards • Next Generation Science Standards development work will begin with State teams, which will provide confidential and continuous feedback throughout the development process. The Lead Partner States will guide the writing team and will also work together to develop plans for adoption, implementation and transition that can be considered by other states. • In addition to the state teams and writers there will be a critical stakeholder team (K–12 educators, administrators, higher education faculty, scientists, engineers, business leaders, policymakers, and key organizations). This team will provide confidential feedback at critical points in the development process. • Timeline The release of the Next Generation Science Standards is expected in Fall 2012, with public drafts available in winter 2011/12 and summer of 2012.