Unpacking Standards
Over Term 1 in Auckland we have been unpacking the external Level 1 standards.
Both new and experienced teachers have found unpacking standards useful. New teachers found it useful for developing a deeper understanding of the New Zealand curriculum and for experienced teachers it has provided a checkpoint to ensure teaching and learning is still relevant for their learners, connected to the curriculum and meeting the requirements of the standards used to assess the learning.
Unpacking standards provides a checkpoint to make sure we are not teaching what we are teaching because "this is the way we always do things around here ,TITWWADTAH, but are focusing on the wider skills of solving problems, and understandings so that students can apply their learning and adapt when faced with different problems and challenges.
I also find the template fits well with the SOLO framework - Skills & knowledge provide the pre structural to multi structural thinking; essential questions & understandings fill the relational thinking box and extended abstract thinking comes from the application in a wider context, the big picture or transferable goals.
It could also fit with John Hattie's thinking around surface level & deep learning
Completing the template
In my experience it is much better to work with others when filling out this template. A jigsaw approach or think pair share work well when you have several teachers involved.
For me I start with the big picture goal - what are the transferable goals and then there are no rules as to the best way to complete. I have always gone with the flow of the group thinking.
Useful resources for completing the template for learning connected to the external assessments
Jay Mctighe says his greatest lesson learned, is to plan backwards with clarity about the desired outcome or problem you need to solve in mind before you take action.
Both new and experienced teachers have found unpacking standards useful. New teachers found it useful for developing a deeper understanding of the New Zealand curriculum and for experienced teachers it has provided a checkpoint to ensure teaching and learning is still relevant for their learners, connected to the curriculum and meeting the requirements of the standards used to assess the learning.
Unpacking standards provides a checkpoint to make sure we are not teaching what we are teaching because "this is the way we always do things around here ,TITWWADTAH, but are focusing on the wider skills of solving problems, and understandings so that students can apply their learning and adapt when faced with different problems and challenges.
 |
| Upgrade your Teaching ASCD Webinar Mctighe & Wills 2019 |
 |
| Unpacking template for External Assessment |
I have found the template we used, adapted from Wiggins and McTighe, one of the most useful tools for really thinking about the what and why of what we want our students to learn. It helps to focus our thinking on what it is we really want our students to take from their learning.
It could also fit with John Hattie's thinking around surface level & deep learning
 |
| Upgrade your teaching: Mctighe & Wills |
In my experience it is much better to work with others when filling out this template. A jigsaw approach or think pair share work well when you have several teachers involved.
- The mathematics and statistics teaching and learning guides aka the curriculum is the place to begin when planning teaching and learning.
- The standard itself is important as this is what students are assessed against. Standards specify what a candidate needs to know, do, and understand for the assessment.
- The assessment specifications - these are updated each year and summarise the key elements offer further clarification of what is required in the standard.
- Assessment reports; published towards the middle of the next year and are a summary of what the markers saw, across all of the scripts. They are a very useful summary of what did and didn’t go well and common issues.
- Previous exam papers, exemplar scripts and assessment schedules are useful to highlight exam literacy. Students need specific exam literacy so looking at previous exam papers, exemplar scripts and assessment schedules is useful as they show the sorts of questions that are asked and the way they are worded and the criteria for Achieved, Merit and Excellence.
- For statistics standards Census at school is a key resource
Internal achievement standards
The unpacking template can also be adapted for looking in depth at the learning that will be assessed internally. My version and samples are here.
The unpacking template can also be adapted for looking in depth at the learning that will be assessed internally. My version and samples are here.
The resource list changes slightly when thinking about internal assessment, the teaching and learning guides and the standards are the first port of call. Then
- The clarifications - latest interpretations of the standards.
- Moderators newsletters and the reinstated National Moderators report
- Conditions of assessment - considerable flexibility is allowed so it is worthwhile spending time considering the best way to collect evidence against the standard.
- Exemplars, of student work. I think the best exemplars you can find are those drawn from your students and have been externally moderated. The ones on the NZQA site are there to illustrate grade boundaries.
To make finding information easier the curriculum, the standard the clarifications and conditions of assessment have been summarised onto one A3 page for each internal & updated for 2019.
Comments
Post a Comment