SpringBoard by CollegeBoard and California GEAR UP Partnership
SpringBoard® is the foundational component for the College Board’s College Readiness System, offering a proven Pre-AP program that increases participation and prepares a greater diversity of students for success in AP, college and beyond – without remediation. Based on College Board Standards for College Success and aligned to the Common Core State Standards, SpringBoard offers the only integrated college readiness solution that includes a rigorous curriculum, formative assessments and sustainable professional development.
SpringBoard workshops attended by ELA and Mathematics teachers from our pilot SpringBoard schools (King, Foothill, and Jones) last week as part of their SpringBoard professional development plan. Both sessions were highly professional and effective in their content and delivery.
2014 ELA Scoring Student Work
On November 12, 2014, nineteen teachers from Charles D. Jones Junior High School, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, and Foothill Middle School came together to learn to collaborate productively to examine student work and determine next steps for instruction. They followed a common protocol for examining, scoring, and discussing actual student writing that the teachers brought to the session and were empowered to form conclusions and make plans to differentiate instruction, focus planning, and adjust pacing to propel students forward. Teachers gained an understanding of how to use Scoring Guides to score student work and effective protocols to support ongoing professional collaboration around how to use student data to inform instruction. Susie Lowry, a national SpringBoard Lead Trainer, effectively facilitated this session.
Focus Question: How can common scoring of student work promote student achievement?
This SpringBoard workshop was highly successful, as expressed during conversations throughout the day and the closing reflections. The trainer, who traveled from Florida to be with the group, had a high level of experience and expertise. She was impressed with the teachers’ level of engagement, their content knowledge, and their collaborative spirit. They all worked together very intently in grade level groups and exchanged contact information with each other from the three different schools represented.
2014 Mathematics Content Seminar
On November 13, 2014, thirteen teachers from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, and Foothill Middle School came together to learn more about implementing the new SpringBoard Pre-AP mathematics program aligned with the Common Core State Standards. This seminar provided an intensive study of a single course or middle grade level by examining closely the content, skills, pedagogy and assessments of the instructional units within a SpringBoard level. Through interactive modeling, teachers gained a deeper understanding of how to plan and deliver lessons using strategic instructional practices to support student learning that is aligned to the expectations of the Common Core State Standards. Tammy Buckshi, a national SpringBoard Lead Trainer and expert in mathematics instruction, facilitated the successful session.
The workshop was well received by the participants, as expressed during conversations throughout the day and the closing reflections. There was a noticeable positive increase in teacher engagement among some of the first-year implementers who seemed reluctant in the beginning. The trainer, who traveled from North Carolina to be with the group, had the pulse of the group at all times and was adept at adjusting activities and keeping participants’ attention.
The Springboard ELA workshop conducted at King on November 12th gave our teachers an excellent opportunity to receive much needed professional development around effective strategies to score student writing. The session was designed to show teachers how to score student work in grade-level groups, so they can apply the process to examine and score Embedded Assessments in grade-level meetings throughout the school year.
In this era of teachers’ transitioning to teaching the Common Core State Standards, there is a targeted focus on students attaining the skills necessary to be successful in college and careers so the training was timely and effective. Teachers first received modeling of how they should score student writing, then practical strategies to provide students effective feedback.
By conducting the training in a collaborative setting, teachers were able to support each other’s learning. The trainer was especially skilled at dispelling some of the misconceptions of writing and some of the mistakes we have made in teaching writing like overemphasizing mechanics.
Teachers walked a way with practical strategies and a system for collaborating over the teaching and learning of writing skills. Our students will greatly benefit from having teachers who have the skill-set to calibrate scores, identify writing models to serve as scoring guides, and provide feedback that will improve students ability to have highly organized, content rich writing experiences.
For more information on California GEAR UP and our partnerships please check out our
website. You can learn more about SpringBoard
here.
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