Doubling the Number of Teachers for Common Assignment Study

 By:  Renee Boss

As we near the end of the 2013-2014 academic calendar year, we are excited to announce that we will double the number of Kentucky teachers participating in the Common Assignment Study, a collaborative research study in which Kentucky and Colorado teachers create units of study for their students.  The expansion of our project comes on the heels of teachers and students wrapping up the second common unit this semester.  In addition to increasing the number of Kentucky and Colorado who participate, year 2 of the research study will involve teachers taking more of a leadership role in facilitating their colleague work groups during the summer workshops and throughout the 2014-2015 school year for ongoing face-to-face and virtual meetings.

Virtual and face-to-face meetings this school year allowed 22 teachers from Fayette and Kenton counties to collaborate with 22 teachers from Colorado.  The Common Core State Standards (known in Kentucky as the Kentucky Core Academic Standards and in Colorado as the Colorado Academic Standards) provided teachers a common set of standards to plan units of study for students in both states.  The goal is to engage students using essential questions and a thematic focus based on the Understanding by Design Framework for developing units of study.  Embedded within these units are Literacy Design Collaborative modules and other performance based assessments providing students an opportunity to demonstrate their understanding of the content and skills targeted for each unit.

Moving forward an additional 24 teachers from each state will join their colleagues in revising the units of study created this year.  This summer teachers from Washington, Simpson, and Fleming Counites will join Fayette and Kenton County teachers and teachers from multiple districts in Colorado for summer workshops hosted here in Kentucky.  The workshops will be co-facilitated by Kentucky and Colorado teachers and will include teachers analyzing samples of student work and making decisions about adjustments needed for the instructional units before they are taught again.

The collaboration between states allows Kentucky teachers and students to be connected based on the content they are learning and the skills they are acquiring. The crux of this project is teachers leading the work because this is the only way we will sustain and expand it in our states.  While the research study itself will end in the summer of 2016, the work in our states will continue to evolve and expand based on the needs of students in Kentucky and in Colorado. 

Common Assignment Study Gears Up for Second Semester

 By:  Renee Boss

We are one semester into our Common Assignment Study, and this means Kentucky and Colorado teachers have implemented one common unit in each of six subject/grade groups, have reflected upon what worked and what didn't, have analyzed student work, and have designed new units of study based on these learnings.   When we last wrote about our work, we were just beginning the implementation of the fall units, and now we are preparing for new units of study that will be taught during the spring semester, and we are also discussing how our work might expand during 2014-2015.

 For the past six months, Kentucky and Colorado teachers have demonstrated dedication, perseverance, and effectiveness.  Teachers regularly devoted Sunday afternoons or weeknights after teaching all day for conference calls, webinars, and Google Hangouts to collaborate on unit revisions and to share ideas about what was working during unit implementation and what wasn't.  Teachers also utilized social media via Twitter, and the CAS online platform to share ideas, communicate, and to encourage one another. You can read more about the fall units the teachers implemented by visiting this link.

Loveland, Colorado

After months of virtual collaboration, the Kentucky and Colorado groups were reunited in Colorado last week when the Colorado Legacy Foundation and the Thompson Public Schools district hosted workshops for us in their beautiful facilities in Loveland, Colorado.  Days full of collaboration and hard work yielded great results.  Check out our workshop hashtag if you want to follow some of the group dynamics and ups and downs of our week on Twitter at #casconvene. You can also read a personal account of the week by visiting here.

A few hints of what's coming this spring...

• Students in middle school science will design roller coasters.
• Students in middle school social studies will explore Westward Expansion.
• Students in high school science will explore human impact on biodiversity.
• Students in high school English language arts will argue the impact of social media on language.

The above are only hints not complete unit explanations because we want to allow the teachers some time and space for implementation,  but rest assured all units are designed using UbD frameworks and are thoughtful about how to engage students in learning.

While it's too early to communicate any research findings, we can certainly share that an overall impression of the work is that collaboration is tough, but productive struggle makes it worth it when we see improved student work and learning.

Middle School Social Studies teachers from both states

Online Tools Essential for Collaobrating Across States

 Using online tools such as Google Hangout, Google Docs, WebEx, and Twitter, Kentucky teachers are showing they will do what it takes to make a collaboration project with Colorado teachers benefit their students.  As mentioned in the previous Common Assignment post, teachers are collaborating across states to create common units of study. 

While the bulk of the fall unit preparation was completed face-to-face in Seattle over the summer, teachers are currently refining and revising the units of study now that they have met their students and have a better understanding of what each student needs to be successful.  Anyone who has ever been a teacher will tell you, your work doesn't end when the final bell rings at the end of each day.  Kentucky and Colorado teachers are collaborating after school hours and even on the weekends to make this project a success.  According to English teacher, Sherri McPherson, the benefit of this collaborative project is the team of teachers from two states teaching at the same time and making adjustments based on feedback they provide to each other.  They are in this work together with "no lone wolves."

Lafayette High English Teacher, Sherri McPherson, collaborating online Sunday afternoon

Common Assignment Study

By:  Renee Boss

The Common Assignment Study is a research study bringing together teachers from Kentucky and Colorado with a mission of creating units of study that will meet the demands of learning needed to ensure College and Career Readiness. English language arts, science, and social studies teachers from both states gathered recently in Seattle to begin creating the first unit they will teach this fall.  Based on recent successes with Literacy Design Collaborative (LDC) in our state and across the nation, the research study extends the use of LDC as it was always intended to be a module within a larger unit of study.  Though the units being designed include embedded LDC modules within a context of Understanding by Design (UbD), they also leave room for some teacher flexibility to meet the needs of individual students in each classroom.

With support from content experts at Stanford Center for Assessment Learning and Equity (SCALE), the teachers are emerging as teacher leaders who know what good teaching looks like.  With Kentucky’s new Professional Growth and Effectiveness System (PGES) emphasizing the importance of every student being taught by an effective teacher and every school being led by an effective principal, one hope is that the Common Assignment Study (CAS) is in a unique position to inform the various measures.

In addition to the teachers working collaboratively with one another, there are numerous organizations collaborating to support the work.  Already mentioned is the support of SCALE; the Kentucky Department of Education serves as a thought partner on the project, and The Fund continues to learn from the Colorado Legacy Foundation (an organization similar to The Fund that was established several years ago).  Of course, a research study would not be complete without researchers (Center for Assessment and Research for Action), and none of the work would be happening without the generous support of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

U.S. History teachers share their unit overview

In an upcoming post we will share more details about the project partners.  If you have questions about the Common Assignment Study, please contact Renee Boss at renee.boss@thefundky.org.