COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS & SKILLS

by Christina AL-Haddadin

Teacher, Learning Support

People have quite different views on what are Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and Why are Common Core Standards important ?

The Teacher's Academy.com September 27, 2016

Lets start by defining(CCSS)which are set of clear college- and career-ready standard for kindergarten through 12th grade in English language arts/literacy and mathematics, so every student in America will be learning similar key skills at a similar time during the educational process instead of every state has its grade level educational standards; that was the situation for a decade or much longer.                                
so the standards showed up to help guide local school boards as they make critical decisions about curriculum, textbooks, teachers, course offerings, and other aspects of district instructional programs.
If you watch the video on the Common Core State Standards website, it gives a simple overview of why the standards were initiated, who is responsible for crafting the standards and what the expectations are for US students. Check this video to Learn about the Common Core in 3 minutes.

So How they were developed?
Governors and chief state school officers began talking about the need for a common set of high standards. In 2009 the National Governors Association Center (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) invited states to commit to a process to develop common standards in English language arts/literacy and mathematics.
The final standards were published on June 2010 and available for each state to review and consider which standards to apply.
To learn more about CCSS check Common Core State Standard .

The Common Core enables collaboration among states; Teachers were involved in the creation of standards plus:
1. The National Education Association (NEA),
2. American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
3. National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM)
4. National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE)
other organizations, to provide specific and constructive feedback on the standards.

Standards that are expected to learn at each grade level from kindergarten-grade12 are:
English Language Arts/Literacy and Mathematics.
-CCSS has a great impact and focusing on Mathematics standards to help students to apply math inside and outside classroom by making sure that students have conceptual understanding, a high degree of procedural skill and fluency.
-For English Language Arts/Literacy; standards focusing on Reading, writing and speaking by using more deep methods. Check This Link for more details about English Language Arts/Literacy and Mathematics standards.

For me as a new teacher I was not familiar with the whole CCSS standards for English language/Literacy, mathematics and even science; they are trying to have a huge impact to get focusing on science and technical subjects. I have found this 15 hours course Teaching Science using the Common Core Standards  to explore how Science teachers can use the standards to revamp curriculum, take on fresh teaching strategies and improve student learning.

It is important to mention what I have learned about The strategies of How CCSS improve teacher preparation, professional development by: 
1. Increase both the content knowledge of teachers and diversity of teaching force.
2. Alter the professional preparation and/or content of courses for future and practicing teachers.
3. Identify and serve high quality field experiences for all future teachers.
5. Design and maintain a data collection system (including assessments) committed to continuous improvement.
You can find more information about that here: The Common Core State Standards and Teacher Preparation .

I quote from Core Standards organization   :

"With students, parents, and teachers all on the same page and working together toward shared goals, we can ensure that students make progress each year and graduate from high school prepared to succeed in college, career, and life"

When you look at the CCSS as a whole, it's a good thing. The idea that states are all, in theory, teaching the same thing is positive and will hopefully bridge some of the gaps that we currently have.
I believe that it is important for all students, teachers and parents to achieve their goals, to succeed in all aspects of  life.

Sources:

1. Common Core State Standards Initiative. “English Language Arts Standards, Key Design Consideration.” Retrieved from: http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/introduction/key-design-consideration/ .

2. Conference Board of Mathematical Sciences. (2011). Common Standards and The Mathematical Education of Teachers. http://www.cbmsweb.org/Forum3/CBMS_Forum_White_Paper.pdf .

3.Comparing the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects and the Standards of Alberta, Canada and New South Wales, Australia.

http://www.achieve.org/files/IntELABrief.pdf .

4.Teaching science using the common core standards,The teachers academy.

5. Discussion Paper; The Common Core State Standards and Teacher Preparation, http://www.aplu.org/projects-and-initiatives/stem-education/SMTI_Library/APLU-SMTI-Paper-2/file?id=3482 .

6. Core Standard organization, http://www.corestandards.org/read-the-standards/ .