A new study from RAND uses information from teacher polling to examine state implementation of the Common Core State Standards. The data are drawn from two nationally representative surveys of U.S. educators (both K–12 math and ELA teachers) administered in summer and fall 2015. Both had response rates ranging from 57 to 62 percent, with roughly 1,100–1,700 participants responding to each. The questionnaires focus on teachers’ perceptions and practices as they relate to key instructional approaches reflected primarily in the standards. My seven critical takeaways are these:
1) When asked if they ever used particular materials, the majority of math teachers generally report developing materials themselves (97 percent of elementary teachers). Over forty percent of all surveyed elementary teachers claimed that they used the popular and universally available Engage NY.
2) Ninety-eight percent of elementary teachers report using leveled readers, and those who do so weekly or daily describe various applications for them. For instance, high percentages (68 percent) say they use the readers to support struggling students in place of the grade-level text other students are reading. (Yet Common Core supports the teaching of grade-appropriate texts with the idea that teacher support and explanation, not text difficulty, is what should be differentiated to meet the needs of struggling readers.). Sixty-six percent use them for free reading time, and 41 percent use them as an entry point for struggling students before introducing a more challenging text for the whole class to read together.
3) When it comes to online resources, the most popular are Google and Pinterest for both math and ELA teachers.
4) When asked whether the instructional materials they use support particular CCSS practices, many respondents say that their materials support “to a great extent” opportunities for students to use evidence from a text to make inferences or support conclusions drawn from the text (61 percent of secondary ELA teachers), and to read a fictional text of sufficient grade level complexity (54 percent of secondary ELA teachers). Fewer responded similarly for “adapting speech to a variety of contexts,” “writing short or sustained research projects,” or “strengthening writing by planning, revising, [and] editing text.”
5) One-quarter of all teachers have received no professional development on their curricula; vast majorities have received fewer than eight hours.
6) RAND researchers took a page from our October 2013 report and asked ELA teachers whether they used a skills- or text- centric approach. Three-quarters of elementary and secondary ELA teachers say that they focus on reading skills first and organize teaching around them; between 21 and 23 percent choose particular texts for students to read and organize instruction around them. The latter obviously represents the more text-centered approach, and the one endorsed by the Common Core. (Incidentally, our findings from three years ago were reminiscent—73% of elementary teachers used a skills-based approach.)
7) The survey also queried teachers about their understanding of connections among standards across grade levels (part of “coherence”). In math, elementary teachers were more likely to identify the correct below-grade and above-grade standards that prepared students relative to the named or referent standard. But the authors also remarked that the sequence of standards at the elementary level is clearer than at the secondary level.
The report recommends that ELA teachers receive more guidance around what close reading means and when (and when not) to use leveled readers. Math teachers need guidance on how to balance conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and real-world applications.
It seems to me, however, that the data also indicate that publishers are making headway on attending to some CCSS priorities (though not all—got writing?). Disturbingly, ELA teachers overwhelmingly continue to adopt a skills-centered approach rather than one centered on text. That doesn’t bode well for them adopting content-rich approaches either.
SOURCE: V. Darleen Opfer, Julia H. Kaufman, Lindsey E. Thompson, "Implementation of K-12 State Standards for Mathematics and English Language Arts and Literacy," RAND Corporation (April 2016).
