Reform Integration Framework and Resource Guide
This resource provides state and local education agencies with guidance in ways to help educators integrate college- and career-readiness standards, aligned assessments, and educator evaluation and support systems. The Reform Integration Framework helps state and local education leaders a process and organizational structure to identify priorities for integrating reforms. This resource guide is organized into four areas, each pointing to key actions at the state and local level that can support integration of the reforms in schools and classrooms: (1) selecting and using CCRS-aligned instructional materials and assessments; (2) connecting observations and support systems with CCRS to enable better instruction; (3) aligning people, technology, time, and money with implementation of CCRS, aligned assessments, and educator evaluation and support systems; and (4) involving teachers, leaders, and external partners to improve the agency’s integration efforts. This guide can help state and local education leaders to “better clarify the points of intersection among the reforms in your State or district, to locate aligned resources and to learn more on how others are doing promising work to integrate reforms” (p. 3).
The authors of this resource state their purposes clearly (see the summary of this resource) and reach them. The guide was developed through a rigorous process, and, although it is not clear to what extent the guide was evaluated in actual settings, the steps, recommendations, examples, and external resources are of high quality. Communications quality is very strong, with effective links on each page to other resources or examples. One communications shortcoming is the use of light colored text throughout the guide, considerably decreasing readability. Utility should be very high, especially if the authors make regular updates to the resources and ensure that all hyperlinks remain active. The overall quality of this resource suggests a very probable positive effect on learning as well as improved school reform.