Kindergarten Entry Assessment Pilot available this fall

Michigan’s Kindergarten Entry Assessment (KEA) is an authentic observational system for assessing children in the first 45 days of kindergarten. The KEA will provide teachers and parents with important criterion-based information about a child’s learning and development in five domains at the beginning of kindergarten so that teachers can inform individual instruction and parents can provide learning opportunities beyond the school day. The domains assessed include:

• Mathematics
• Literacy and Language
• Approaches toward Learning
• Social and Emotional Development
• Physical Well-Being and Motor Development

What's New?

• KEA Trainers Needed  • KEA Trainer Application for Michigan Kindergarten Entry Assessment Trainers • Core Competencies for KEA Trainers  Michigan's Kindergarten Entry Assessment • Kindergarten Entry Assessment Fall 2013 Pilot Testing Information  • Fall 2013 Kindergarten Entry Assessment Pilot Testing Interest Survey • Michigan Kindergarten Entry Assessment FAQ  Educator Professional Development • Kindergarten Entry Assessment PowerPoint Presentation

Upcoming Kalamazoo County Pre-K Recruitment Events

PD Opportunity: Smarter Balanced need-to-knows

Starting in Spring 2015, Michigan will implement the new assessment system from the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium. We will use these assessments for our federal accountability in Math and ELA for grades 3-8 and 11.

A successful implementation of the new assessment system requires planning on all levels: district, school, and classroom. Educational leaders should attend this one-day session to explore and become familiar with the new assessment framework and to begin to plan for a successful implementation on the district and school levels.

April 24, 2013

8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Kalamazoo RESA Service Center

For Superintendents, Administrators, Dept. Chairs, Lead Teachers, and Coaches

Register NOW

Together, we will explore and answer

·    What opportunities will districts, schools, teachers, and students have to access and use the SBAC assessments before 2014-15?

·    To what extent will educational leaders and teachers be involved in the piloting and review phases of development?

·    What tools will be offered as part of the Balanced Assessment system? What type of PD will be provided?

·    What will happen to our students’ proficiency scores on these new assessments?

·    What will happen to the ACT? When is it going away? Will there be a MEAP assessment in 2014?

·    What support will teachers need in transitioning to the new assessment system?

·    What needs to happen with my district or school’s technology plan so that we are ready for the new assessments?

·    What do our parents and guardians need to know about the new assessment system?

Pair this session with “Smarter Balanced – ELA” on May 8 to ensure you are fully informed and ready to plan for implementation with fidelity.

Local District Common Core Professional Development Survey

MAISA and REMC have teamed up to gauge where educators are at in terms of transitioning to the Common Core State Standards in ELA and mathematics. Please consider completing this short survey so that they might determine your Professional Development needs over the next few years. They are hoping that Superintendents, Administrators, Teachers, and Support Staff will all complete the survey.
Communication + Teamwork = Success! 

Registration now open: MCTM annual conference

The 2013 Michigan Council of Teachers of Mathematics (MCTM) Conference Committee is pleased to announce that registration for the annual conference is now open!  Rates have remained the same or decreased from last year’s rates.  
The conference is being held Wednesday-Thursday, July 31-August 1 at Traverse City West Senior High School, with the pre-conference institutes are being held on Tuesday, July 30.
Keynote speakers
On Wednesday, we have Dr. Michael Shaughnessy, who is the immediate past-president of NCTM. 
On Thursday, we will be joined by Valerie Mills, who is the president-elect of the National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics.  
More information will be available shortly for our institutes.  You can select two of the following half-day options

• Chris Hirsch (WMU), Brin Keller (MSU), and Alden Edson (WMU), presenting on NCTM’s recently released free Core Math Tools
• Sean Carmody, Holt Public Schools, presenting on formative assessment for the mathematics classroom
• Kristin Bieda, Michigan State University, presenting on implementing the Mathematical Practices.
• Michael Shaugnessy, past-president of NCTM, presenting on engaging students through reasoning and sense-making

You also have the option of attending a full-day institute on the MAISA Common Core Math units.
Many of the rates expires in early June, so book early.  The annual Traverse City Film Festival is being held the same week, so you can see some great films after learning all day!

If you have any questions, please contact Kevin Dykema, conference chair. 

Principals' guide to supporting common core implementation

As an elementary school administrator you are tasked with supporting the transition to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Join Dr. “Skip” Fennell for this lively presentation and open Q&A dialogue around the latest thinking on the CCSS and implementation in elementary mathematics. 

Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching - nominate your excellent teachers now!

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2013 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and ScienceTeaching. Teachers may nominate themselves or someone else may nominate them for this award. 

NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN

The 2013 Awards will honor mathematics and science (including computer science) teachers working in grades 7-12. Nominations close on April 1, 2013.

Nominate a Teacher

TEACHERS: APPLY ONLINE

Before logging in, please review the
2012–2013 Application Packet (Adobe PDF). Applications must be completed by May 1, 2013.

Begin or Resume an Application

Educators needed for Smarter Balanced

The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium will be developing an online digital library designed to be a one-stop site with professional development opportunities to learn more about balanced assessment systems, in particular formative assessment practices. The digital library is envisioned to have an extensive selection of resources necessary to transform classroom instructional and classroom assessment practices in support of student readiness for career and college.

The Michigan Department of Education is looking to recruit 75 – 90 Michigan educators to become members of a network of educators from other states within the Smarter Balanced Consortium with the purpose of identifying and recommending resources for the SBAC Digital Library and educating colleagues on the purpose and use of the SBAC Digital Library.  

More information regarding the role of Michigan’s educators in the development of the SBAC Digital Library, including expected time commitment and reimbursement is included in the application. 

  

The deadline to complete the online survey application is THIS Friday, January 25, 2013.

If you have questions, please contact: Kimberly Young, SBAC Formative Assessment Practices and Professional Learning Work Group, at 517-373-0988.

Educators needed for Smarter Balanced Digital Library Development

The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium will be developing an online digital library designed to be a one-stop site with professional development opportunities to learn more about balanced assessment systems, in particular formative assessment practices. The digital library is envisioned to have an extensive selection of resources necessary to transform classroom instructional and classroom assessment practices in support of student readiness for career and college.
The Michigan Department of Education is looking to recruit 75 – 90 Michigan educators to become members of a network of educators from other states within the Smarter Balanced Consortium with the purpose of identifying and recommending resources for the SBAC Digital Library and educating colleagues on the purpose and use of the SBAC Digital Library.  
More information regarding the role of Michigan’s educators in the development of the SBAC Digital Library, including expected time commitment and reimbursement is included in the application.  

HURRY! The deadline to complete the online survey application is Friday, January 25, 2013.
If you have questions, please contact: Kimberly Young, SBAC Formative Assessment Practices and Professional Learning Work Group, at 517-373-0988.

What do administrators need to know about the CCSS?

What do district administrators need to know about the Common Core State Standards (CCSS)? The September 2011 “Spotlight on the Common Core State Standards” reviews actions district administrators should consider taking now to prepare their schools for CCSS implementation. Included in the four-page brief are suggestions for drafting an implementation plan; planning long-range, articulated professional development; developing a transition plan and curriculum framework; and more.

See the other issues in this series.

Education Northwest repost

Pilot Michigan's NEW Interim Assessments

Michigan's Bureau of Assessment and Accountability (BAA) is pleased to announce the launch of a new assessment program, the Michigan Interim Assessment Program.  

These new assessments will be online, pre-post assessments to be given at the beginning of a grade/course and end of a grade/course.  These assessments may also be used as one possible measure of student growth.  The Michigan Interim Assessment Program includes grade 3 – high school assessments in science and social studies, which are aligned to Michigan’s current Grade Level Content Expectations (GLCEs) and High School Content Expectations (HSCEs).  Additionally, the Michigan Interim Assessment Program includes Kindergarten through 2^nd grade and high school course-based assessments in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics, which are aligned to the Common Core State Standards.

Michigan educators will play a critical role in assisting BAA in the development of the Michigan Interim Assessment at all grade levels and content areas.  The first opportunity to experience these new assessments for teachers and students in grades 3 through high school is pilot testing in science and social studies, which will take place in April and May 2013.  

The pilot science interim assessments include grade 3 – 7 grade level assessments, and Earth science, biology, chemistry, and physics high school course-based assessments. The pilot social studies interim assessments include grade 3 – 8 grade level assessments, and U.S. history and geography, world history and geography, civics, and economics high school course-based assessments.

The minimum technology requirements for the online assessments include

Apple                                                                                                  Windows           

·        MAC OS X® 10.5 – 10.8                                                         Windows XP®   or 7

·        256 MB of RAM or greater                                                      256 MB of RAM or greater

·        1024x768 or greater screen res                                             1024x768 or greater screen res

·        10 MB hard disk space                                                             100 MB hard disk space

·        400 MHz processor                                                                  700 MHz processor

To participate in the Michigan Interim Assessment pilots, please complete this survey by Friday, January 18, 2013.

Districts may have several buildings participate but each building must register by completing the survey.

Enroll in a National K-5 Reading and Math Study and Receive Free Resources and Professional Development

SEDL is conducting a study of McGraw- Hill’s SRA Imagine It! Today’s Open Court, a reading program, and Everyday Mathematics® to determine the programs’ impact on teacher practices and student academic achievement over a 2-year period.
Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, the SEDL study is be the first rigorous, independent large-scale evaluation of either program. The findings of this study will help give policymakers, researchers, and educators a better understanding of each program.
Who Is Eligible?
We are looking for districts with two or more elementary schools that are willing to implement either program, SRA Imagine It! or Everyday Mathematics.® In addition, participating schools need to

• have classrooms of students in grades K–5, with at least 44 students in each of these grades and
• have not used SRA Imagine It! or Everyday Mathematics® since the 2010–2011 school year.

How Will You Benefit?

• Participating schools will receive FREE SRA Imagine It! or Everyday Mathematics® textbooks, supplemental materials, teacher guides and access to online resources.
• Participating schools will also receive FREE professional development at your school and support to implement the programs for the duration of the study!
• Participating schools are taking action that may increase overall performance on state-mandated reading and math assessment and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Participation Requirements
If your district participates in the study, approximately half of the eligible participating schools will be randomly assigned SRA Imagine It! and half will be randomly assigned Everyday Mathematics®. Each school will receive free materials for its assigned program, including textbooks, supplementary materials, teacher’s guides, and access to online resources. In addition, each school will receive free professional development, including 1-day launch and three follow-up visits from trainers during each year of the study. Schools will be asked to use the assigned program as their core curriculum for that subject.

The study will last 2 years. Districts that join the study now will begin implementation in the fall of 2013 and participate until the end of the 2014–2015 school year. A school assigned to implement Everyday Mathematics® will agree not to purchase and implement the SRA Imagine It! for the 2-year duration of the study and vice versa. However, participating schools may purchase additional materials for their assigned curriculum to supplement the core materials and trainings provided by the study.

If you would like more information or wish to nominate your district or school, please contact project director Sarah Caverly at 800-476-6861 or email research@sedl.org.

Become a Smarter Balanced Pilot School!

The first large scale Smarter Balanced Pilot Test will be administered this spring to students in grades 3–11. The Pilot will be a computer-based administration in the content areas of English language arts/literacy (ELA) and mathematics. Items are aligned to the Common Core State Standards and will include selected response, constructed response, and performance tasks.


Schools will be able to participate in the Pilot in one of two ways.

1. “Volunteer” school: open to all schools in Smarter Balanced states and will ensure that all schools have the opportunity to experience the basic functionality of the system
2. “Scientific” school: targets a representative sample of schools and yields critical data about the items developed to date as well as about how the system is functioning

Participation and Expectations 

• Volunteering Schools (Released Test Items available during the second half of the Pilot Test window): All schools are encouraged to volunteer to participate in the Smarter Balanced Pilot Test. All schools that volunteer will receive an opportunity to administer a version of the assessment. Schools are invited to indicate their interest in volunteering for the Pilot by registering via the online survey. REGISTER NOW TO BECOME A VOLUNTEER PILOT SCHOOL.
• Scientifically Selected Schools (two-week window between February 20 to May 10, 2013): Schools (approximately 10% in each state) will be selected to participate in this Pilot based on predetermined demographic criteria, to ensure that the Pilot items are administered to a representative sample of students. Selected schools will be contacted between late November 2012 and January 2013 to be invited to participate in the scientific component of the Pilot Test. 

Administration Time
For scheduling purposes, schools should plan for approximately three hours of testing, per grade per content area. Testing times will vary depending on the subject area, grade, and type of module provided. Scientifically selected schools will be requested to administer the Pilot Test in no more than two grades. Only one content area (ELA or mathematics) will be administered for each grade within a school. The Release Test Items will be available for the other grades and content areas.

Technical Requirements for Participation
The online test delivery system will work on a variety of hardware/operating system configurations. Computers used for the Pilot assessment administration must meet certain minimum requirements to function effectively. Most current systems will work, with the caveat that faster processors and more hard drive space will improve performance. Detailed information on minimum specifications for Smarter Balanced systems will be made available to all Smarter Balanced states on December 4, 2012.

Accommodations and Testing Features
Some of the most common online accommodations and testing features will be available for the Pilot. The accommodations on the Pilot assessment will not be representative of the full array of accommodations and testing features that will ultimately be available.

If you have any questions, please contact American Institutes for Research 

Math Fluency: Simply 'fast' and 'accurate'?

Attention all K-5 parents and teachers!
As mathematics educators at all levels consider effective implementation and instruction related to state or Common Core State Standards, a frequently asked question is, 
"What does it mean to be fluent in mathematics?" 
The answer, more often than not, is, "Fast and accurate." Building fluency should involve more than speed and accuracy. It must reach beyond procedures and computation. 

Did you know?
There are actually three aspects to mathematical fluency. If we don't stress each, we're not doing what we need to be doing with our students:

1. Accuracy
2. Efficiency
3. Find out the third here

Common Core State Standards: Bringing Parents on Board

As schools across the country move toward implementing the Common Core State Standards, district officials face a major challenge:  How do we make the new academic expectations understandable to parents?  A number of national organizations, including the Council of the Great City Schools and the National Parent Teacher Association, have taken up that effort, publishing written materials and creating video and audio segments—in multiple languages—designed to explain the standards to parents, in clear, jargon-free terms. Our webinar guests will talk about those efforts, describe common challenges that districts face in discussing the common core with parents, and explain how school systems can address parents’ fears and misgivings about the standards. Guests: Denise Walston, director of mathematics, Council of the Great City Schools, Wash. Gina Kilday, K-6 mathematics coach, Exeter-West Greenwich Regional School District, R.I. This webinar will be moderated by Sean Cavanagh, assistant editor for Education Week. Underwriting for this webinar has been provided by the Walton Family Foundation.

Register now for this free live webinar. 

An archived version of the event will be available within 24 hours after the original presentation.

Wednesday, November 7, 2012
2-3pm EST

Khan Academy: the hype and the reality

• Are you a teacher who has been incorporating Khan Academy videos into your instruction?
• Are you an administrator whose school is considering using Khan Academy videos as part of a school-wide math initiative?
• Are you home-schooling and using Khan Academy videos?

If so, you need to read on....

In the American Educator article, "Khan Academy: The Hype and The Reality", former math teacher and coach Karim Kai Ani praises Salman Khan for creating such a large collection of instructional videos and sharing them for free – but has several criticisms

• Khan’s style of instruction is very traditional – Do this, then do this – which presents math as a “meaningless series of steps,” says Ani.
• Khan says he does “two minutes of research on Google” to get ready for each video he records, doesn’t use a script, and admits, “I don’t know what I’m going to say half the time.” Ani says, “If a teacher said that, he or she would be fired. And yet, in the past year, Sal Khan has been hailed as the savior for everything that ails public education.”
• Some of the videos are flawed. For example, Khan’s explanation of slope is “rise over run,” which is actually a way to calculate it. “In fact,” says Ani, “slope is a rate that describes how two variables change in relation to one another… To the layperson, this may seem like a trivial distinction, but slope is one of the most fundamental concepts in secondary math.” In June, two math professors pointed out errors in Khan’s lesson on negative numbers, and Khan revised the video.
• Ani is bothered by Khan’s reaction to criticism, which he’s labeled “nitpicking” and driven by jealousy.
• Khan Academy is not the silver bullet it’s hyped to be, says Ani. The real work of improving classroom instruction is providing teachers with PD and resources and giving teams the time to collaborate and create content that will engage students and teach them at a conceptual level. “We face challenges in K-12 education,” Ani concludes, “and they will not be solved with just a Wacom tablet and a YouTube account. Instead, they’ll be solved by teachers who understand their content and how children learn, who walk into the classroom every day and think, ‘I know exactly what I’m going to say, because that’s what teaching means.’”        

There is a longer version of this article that appeared in The Answer Sheet, a Washington Post blog. 

More importantly, read Sal Khan’s response and Ani’s rejoinder.

Thinking About Changing Your Grading and Assessment Practices?

In collaboration with Michigan Department of Education’s Bureau of Assessment & Accountability, Wayne RESA, and MI Streamnet presents


Thinking About Changing Your Grading and Assessment Practices?
Why It’s Worth Doing – For Your Students and for YOU!”


A Live Video Stream for Teachers, School Administrators, and School Leaders
Tuesday, October 2, 2012 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. EST


Amy Hodgson, Superintendent, will describe how Dansville Schools has progressed from traditional grading and assessment to a student-centered, proficiency-based approach that is increasing student achievement. 
Participants will learn how teachers have applied best practice in the area of grading. Learn the step-by-step process of making these significant grading changes, the pitfalls to avoid and hear stories from students and teachers that will demonstrate why it’s worth it to change your grading and assessment paradigm.

This live event will not be bridged. However, individuals are encouraged to gather together to watch, discuss, and submit questions.
To view on-line, click on the “Live Stream” link located by program date and time, and click in. Participants will be able to download posted documents.

After the live event, this presentation may be viewed on “Video on Demand” section. 
MI Streamnet Help Desk: 1-734-334-5254.

During the live event, you may send questions through the message box or you may email questions.

DVD copies will be available afterward. Cost $10 plus $4 shipping.

FREE ACT Online Test Prep

All Michigan schools with students in 9th grade and higher will receive two years of ACT’s online prep free of charge. This will include all public, private and charter schools. It is anticipated that ACT will be sending all building Principals and MME test supervisors an email sometime this month with the password that will allow electronic monitoring of usage of the program along with the ability to monitor student progress and test information.

The ACT Online Prep Service includes:

• Two full practice tests with real ACT test items.
• Practice essays for the ACT writing test with real-time scoring (100 writing units per school).
• Comprehensive content review for each of the ACT’s four required tests: English, Math, Reading and Science.
• Diagnostic tests and personalized study paths for individual students.
• Anywhere, anytime access via the Internet.

The site license for this product normally has an annual cost of $1,060.

Keep your eyes peeled for the email from ACT for more information.

Great Principals Talk about Getting It Done

A 2011-12 webinar series presented by

The Education Trust

“We educators really do have the knowledge to provide all children with a high-quality education — an education that will help break the cycle of poverty and despair.”

—Molly Bensinger-Lacy, former principal
Graham Road Elementary School

“Leading change is certainly complex, difficult, and continuous. ... The stakes are high, the risks are great, but the chance to have an impact on improving people’s lives is substantial.”

—Jody Spiro, director of educational leadership
The Wallace Foundation

Join Karin Chenoweth and Christina Theokas Wed., March 21, at 4:00 p.m. (EDT), for the final session of our webinar series, Great Principals Talk about Getting It Done. Guests Molly Bensinger-Lacy and Jody Spiro will talk about what we can learn from leaders of schools that are helping all students meet meaningful achievement standards. The previous five sessions are available on demand.

Supported by The Wallace Foundation, these webinars are based on Getting It Done: Leading Academic Success in Unexpected Schools (Harvard Education Press, 2011), the latest book by Chenoweth and Theokas, respectively writer-in-residence and director of research at The Education Trust.

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