Center for Standards, Assessment, and Accountability

Grade Level: Elementary School (K-5)

‘Both and’ Literacy Instruction K-5: A Proposed Paradigm Shift for the Common Core State Standards ELA Classroom

This article proposes a language arts curriculum congruent to the new, English/language arts (ELA) college and career ready standards, particularly to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The idea of behind “‘both and’ literacy instruction” is that all of the following elements are needed for students to form a coherent literacy experience: Foundational literacy practices: […]

Butterfly Unit: Accessing Complex Text in the Primary Grades

This kindergarten class of English language learners (ELLs) demonstrates Lily Wong Fillmore’s guidance in how teachers can support students in acquiring and using academic language and working successfully with complex text. These ELL kindergartners have engaged in a unit studying butterflies where academic vocabulary, language structure, and keys to unlocking the meaning of complex text […]

Effects of Interim Assessments on Student Achievement: Evidence From a Large-Scale Experiment

The study uses data from a 2010-2011 school-level randomized experiment of 70 Indiana public schools to examine the impact of two interim assessment programs, mCLASS in Grades K-2 and Acuity in Grades 3-8, on students’ mathematics and reading achievement. Results indicate no overall treatment effect for Grades 3-8 but a statistically significant negative effect in […]

Lesson-Sized Learning Goals and Success Criteria

This tool is used to record the Learning Goals and Success Criteria of lesson-sized stacks of Building Blocks. Teachers may choose to use one template per stack or record multiple stacks on the same template.

Long Term Goals-Math Yearlong Plan

This tool is designed to be used in tandem with the Gazette and helps teachers arrange the CCRS in math into a yearlong sequence of learning.