Karla Denny, Director of Communications, 785-296-4876
November 17, 2008
Additions to the State Board of Education Highlights
TOPEKA—During the regular meeting of the State Board of Education last week, Commissioner Posny reported on the Kansas Reading and Mathematics Standards Review Committees. Both reading and mathematics standards are required to be reviewed within the next year to meet regulatory guidelines. Specifically, the regulation states that:
(b) The state board shall establish curriculum standards which reflect high academic standards for the core academic areas of mathematics, science, reading, writing and social studies. The curriculum standards shall be reviewed every seven years.
The process used to review the standards includes soliciting committee members, establishing meeting dates, selecting a chair and vice-chair, and establishing work groups. Additionally, guidance from the State Board regarding the standards is needed prior to their actual work.
The charge given the committees in light of the Board’s goal and objectives was as follows:
- Integrate the core academic areas of reading and mathematics with career-technical education program standards that focus on the 16 career clusters;
- Use the profiles for the 21st century learner and the 21st century learning environment to provide both the strategic coherence and the structural integrity that is necessary to maintain a focus on the state education framework as articulated by the State Board goal.
- Begin the process with the content areas of mathematics and reading with the career clusters of architecture and construction, finance, and human services and marketing.
- Work in four phases:
o Phase 1—Contenct Development and/or Review: Standards committees will be convened for the content and career cluster areas to focus on the instructional content of each set of standards, paying particular attention to national and international benchmarks, research on promising practice and the measurability of indicators.
o Phase 2—Crosswalk and Refinement: The committees will conduct multiple crosswalks of their standards documents with the profiles of the 21st century learned, refining the standards as deemed necessary. A task force responsible for the coordination of academic and technical integration will begin the process of reconciling the various crosswalks and develop a draft of integrated standards.
o Phase 3—Standards Approval: The committees will use the recommendations and refinements received from the task force, review the assessment design, revise the articulation across all standards to create a final draft to present to the various business and industry bodies for endorsements, and to the State Board for approval and adoption.
o Phase 4—Integration and New Product: The standards committee and other groups will begin using the integrated standards to revise existing resources and create new products required by state and federal regulation. Additionally, a new system of formative and interim assessment and other instructional resources will be developed.
As a result of the changes to the content standards, new state assessments will inevitably be required. The Board voted to maintain the current state assessments in reading and mathematics until the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA currently known as NCLB) has been reauthorized. Taking this action will allow districts and schools the ability to sustain their current instructional efforts and allow the state to maintain trend data over a longer period of time.
Dr. Posny also reported on the new security policy being instituted at KSDE. Please note below:
Security Notice for Visitors at KSDE
In effect November 17, 2008
Please note that as of November 17, 2008, new security procedures will begin at KSDE. As a visitor, you will be asked to enter through the 10th Street door (front door) and sign-in with the receptionist. A Visitor Badge will be issued to you. We ask that you please return the badge to the receptionist and sign out prior to exiting the building. The west door (parking lot door) will now only be accessible by staff members with security badges or by any individuals with a disability. Disabled individuals may enter the west door by pressing the red button on the intercom located to the right of the door and communicating with the receptionist. Meetings scheduled in the satellite room are not affected by the new security policy. Thank you for supporting our new security measures.
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