TAKING NOTE
NOVEMBER 2013
The Tennessee Department of Education explains the
key instructional shifts in math in three areas:xii
Focus: developing a deeper focus in math helps
students build strong foundations and conceptual
understanding of the material.
Coherence: there is coherence across grades levels so that each standard is an extension of earlier
learning.
Rigor: the standards are rigorous in that they
emphasize conceptual understanding of key
concepts, call for
procedural skill
and fluency, and
encourage application of math
in context.
The instructional
shifts for English
language arts also
fall into three main
categories:xiii
What do the math standards
look like in practice?
The teacher introduces
a task, allows time for
students to explore and
discuss the topic, then they:
1) Share: students explain
their methods, repeat
other students’ ideas, put
ideas into their own words,
add on to idea, and ask for
clarification.
2) Compare: students discuss
similarities and differences
between solution paths.
3) Focus: teacher and students
discuss the meaning of
mathematical ideas in each
representation.
Building
knowledge
through contentrich nonfiction
4) Reflect: teacher and students discuss the process.
Source: tncore.org
Reading, writing, and speaking grounded in
evidence from text, both literary and informational
Regular practice with complex text and its academic
language
These instructional shifts will challenge students with
opportunities to think through multiple solution pathways,
show their work, and learn from mistakes. Through
mathematic modeling, students will use math concepts
to analyze real-world situations and develop informed
solutions. For example, students might estimate water
and food needs in a disaster area.xiv In other subjects,
high school students might analyze historical documents
to understand the country’s founding, learn how to
evaluate the validity of an argument, or conduct research
projects that address multiples sides of one issue.xv
PAGE 6
Assessing Student Learning
Hand-in-hand with the work to implement higher
standards is the work to assess student learning on
the new standards. The transition to more rigorous
standards and curriculum requirements through the
Tennessee Diploma Project included key changes to
the state’s assessment program for grades 3-8 and
high school. Now, as the state continues to implement
higher expectations for all students through the
Common Core State Standards, districts are preparing
to administer a new set of assessments (known as
PARCC) in math and English language arts/literacy for
grades three through eleven.
The Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment
Program (TCAP)
The Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program
(TCAP) currently encompasses subject-specific
assessments for grades 3-8, as well as high school
end-of-course exams. As noted earlier, TCAP was
revised during the Tennessee Diploma Project
initiative, and the assessmen ts were made more
rigorous to better align with the higher expectations
for students. Additionally, the cut scores (indicators of
proficiency in a specific subject) were set at a level that
would more accurately reflect Tennessee students’
abilities as compared to their peers nationally rather
than just across the state. As Tennessee embarked on
the work to raise standards and align assessments,
student test scores dropped significantly at first, but
have since continued to steadily increase each year.
Since 2010 when the changes to TCAP were first
implemented, districts across the state have seen
significant increases in the number of students who
are proficient or advanced in math and science from
third through twelfth grade – statewide, there are an
additional 91,119 students who are proficient in math
and 51,825 in science.xvi
College Readiness Exams
In addition to changing the state assessment
program under the Diploma Project, Tennessee also
began requiring specific assessments to measure
whether or not students were on track to graduate
1207 18th Avenue South, Suite 326, Nashville, TN 37212 — tel 615.727.1545 — fax 615.727.1569 — www.tnscore.org