Focus shifts to nonfiction text that constitutes the majority of what people read in college and the workplace
Manageable and Essential
CCR Standards for Adult Education consists of a manageable set of standards essential for college and career readiness
Consistency between K-12 and adult education systems
Opportunity to create common tools and materials to support implementation
Opportunity to prepare students for new assessment models (e.g., GED® test, PARC, and Smarter Balance)
CCR Standards for Adult Education, 2013
English Language Arts/Literacy New Realities
Overview of Content
2014 GED® test
Integrated reading and writing assessment
75% - nonfiction
25% - fiction
Constructed responses
Reasoning through Language Arts
Social Studies
Science
Enhanced technology items
What’s new in the Reading content domain?
Analyze how individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact.
Analyze the structure of texts.
Determine the author’s purpose or point of view.
Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text.
Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics.
What’s new in the Language content domain?
Complete item types that simulate real-life editing tasks
Edit to eliminate non-standard or informal usage
Develop an argument and support ideas with text-based evidence
Strategically apply awareness of audience and purpose of the task
What’s new in the Writing domain?
Constructed Responses
Provide real-world opportunity for test-takers to develop an argument and support ideas with text-based evidence
Integrate reading and writing skills
Scored using a multi-dimensional rubric
Can be an extended response or a short answer
Then
2002 GED® Essay Prompt
What is one important goal you would like to achieve in the next few years?
In your essay, identify that one goal and explain how you plan to achieve it. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.
Now – 2014 GED® test
Holistic Scoring
Begin With THE END IN Mind!
CCR Writing Standards
CCR Anchor 1: Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
Introduce a claim
Supply evidence of each claim
Use words, phrases, and clauses to link sections Create cohesion
Establish and maintain formal style and objective tone
Attend to the conventions
Provide a concluding statement that supports argument presented
Trait 1 Rubric Overview
Argument
Creation of argument
Evidence – use of text citations to support created argument of source text(s)
Validity
Assessment of the argument in source text(s)
Analysis of the issue
Integration
Integration of claims, explanations and textual evidence
Connection of purpose to prompt
Trait 2 Rubric Overview
Ideas
Development (reasoning)
Elaboration of ideas
Progression
Progression (flow) of ideas
Connection of details to main ideas
Organization
Structured to convey message
Transitional devices
Words
Appropriate word choice
Advanced vocabulary application
Awareness
Demonstrated to audience and purpose
Form of writing – objective rhetoric and persuasive
Trait 3 Rubric Overview
Conventions – Application of standard English (e.g., homonyms/contractions, subject-verb agreement, pronoun usage, placement of modifiers, capitalization, punctuation)
Sentence Structure
Variety
Clarity
Fluency (e.g., correct subordination, avoidance of wordiness, run-on sentences, awkwardness, usage of transition words, appropriate usage for formal structure
The article presents arguments from both supporters and critics of Daylight Saving Time who disagree about the practice’s impact on energy consumption and safety.
In your response, analyze both positions presented in the article to determine which one is best supported. Use relevant and specific evidence from the article to support your response.
Materials from GED Testing Service®
Reviewing the Anchor Papers
Read each of the anchor papers
Identify the following:
Claim or stance
Evidence to support claim or stance
Strengths and weaknesses of each writing sample
Development of ideas and organization
Use of the conventions of standard English
Sentence structure
Errors in mechanics and conventions
Trait 1 Rubric Overview
Argument
Creation of argument
Evidence – use of text citations to support created argument of source text(s)
Validity
Assessment of the argument in source text(s)
Analysis of the issue
Integration
Integration of claims, explanations and textual evidence
Connection of purpose to prompt
Trait 1: Creating Arguments and Using Evidence
“In the argument for daylight savings time, it seems that the pro daylight savings time position has won. The first article brings up several improvements in the daily lives of Americans which daylight savings time brings about. The article then uses studies and large scale research to support it’s position. In the second article, only smaller scale studies are used, and the writer uses arguments with no factual basis to support an anti-daylight savings position.
In the first article, historical facts are supplied to explain why daylight savings time was created – to save energy during the first world war – and the way it has evolved over the years from a state decision to a national one. . .”
Argument
Supporting Evidence
Trait 2 Rubric Overview
Ideas
Development (reasoning)
Elaboration of ideas
Progression
Progression (flow) of ideas
Connection of details to main ideas
Organization
Structured to convey message
Transitional devices
Words
Appropriate word choice
Advanced vocabulary application
Awareness
Demonstrated to audience and purpose
Form of writing – objective rhetoric and persuasive
Trait 2: Development of Ideas and Organizational Structure
“. . . In the first article, historical facts are supplied to explain why . . .”
“. . . The second article cites this technology, which is much more prevalent now than in the 1970s and certainly more than during the inception of DST . . .”
“. . . The next topic, which is cited by both arguments, is driver and pedestrian safety . . .”
“. . . The second article, however, did not read the facts carefully, because the facts they cite . . .”
Trait 3 Rubric Overview
Conventions – Application of standard English (e.g., homonyms/contractions, subject-verb agreement, pronoun usage, placement of modifiers, capitalization, punctuation)
Sentence Structure
Variety
Clarity
Fluency (e.g., correct subordination, avoidance of wordiness, run-on sentences, awkwardness, usage of transition words, appropriate usage for formal structure
Errors
Mechanics and conventions
Comprehension based on errors
Trait 3: Clarity and Command of Standard English Conventions
“. . . Opponents counter this claim, stating other results from different studies nullify this finding. According to the article, “a study in California indicated that DST had little or no effect on energy consumption that year.” In another study done in Indiana, it showed that “residents of that state spend $8.6 million more each year for energy, and air pollution increased aft he state switched to DST.” It is hypothesized that these jumps in energy and pollution are due to “increased use of air conditioning as a result of maximizing daylight hours.” Clearly this counters the argument that Daylight Savings Time is a cost effective measure. Energy efficiency isn’t the only aspect of DST that can be disproven. . .”
Use of standard English
Sentence variety
Clarity of thoughts
Few errors
2014 GED® SS Extended Response Rubric
Sample Social Studies Prompt
In your response, develop an argument about how the author's position in her letter reflects the enduring issue expressed in the excerpt from Thomas Jefferson. Incorporate relevant and specific evidence from the excerpt and the letter as well as your own knowledge of the enduring issue and the circumstances surrounding the case to support your analysis.
Short Answers in Science
Science Test MC Item
Science Test SA Item
Identify which step (out of four listed) would produce a particular outcome in a scientific process?
Design an experiment to test the hypothesis (given in the stimulus). Be sure to include descriptions of your data collection process and data analysis in your response.
Advantages: SA items allow assessment of a higher level of cognitive complexity because they require test-takers to express a response in their own words.
Tasks that appear in short answer items more like problems test-takers encounter in their daily lives.
Short Answer Scoring Rubric
“Because each item will have its own rules for scoring, scoring guides will be developed alongside the item itself.”
GEDTS® Assessment Guide for Educators 3.3.
A Review of the Research Evidence-based practices for teaching writing include . . .
Give your audience an idea of main points you want to make
Omit excess detail
Leave out minuscule details; focus on what’s relevant
Collapse lists
Condense lists to single descriptive word
Condense multiple paragraphs to one paragraph
Summarizing
British Pass Stamp Act – March 22,1765
Hoping to raise sufficient funds to defend the vast new American territories won from the French in the Seven Years' War, the British government passes the notorious Stamp Act in 1765. The legislation levied a direct tax on all materials printed for commercial and legal use in the colonies, including everything from broadsides and insurance policies to playing cards and dice.
Though the Stamp Act employed a strategy that was common in England, it stirred a storm of protest in the colonies. The colonists argued that Parliament could not impose taxes upon them without their consent. Believing this right to be in peril, the colonists rioted and intimidated all the stamp agents responsible for enforcing the act into resignation.
Not ready to put down the rioters with military force, Parliament eventually repealed the legislation. However, the fracas over the Stamp Act helped plant seeds for a far larger movement against the British government and the eventual battle for independence.
A person who seems in charge of every situation is sometimes called a “natural leader.” People often look to such a person to lead them in projects both great and small.
Select someone you have read about who seems to be a natural leader. Write an essay in which you describe the person and his or her accomplishments so vividly that your readers will feel they know the person.
It’s Your Turn - Unpack a GED® Prompt
While Dr. Silverton’s speech outlines the benefits of cloud seeding, the editorial identifies drawbacks of this process.
In your response, analyze both the speech and the editorial to determine which position is best supported. Use relevant and specific evidence from both sources to support your response.
Type your response in the box. This task may require approximately 45 minutes to complete.
It’s Your Turn - Unpack a GED® Prompt
While Dr. Silverton’s speech outlines the benefits of cloud seeding, the editorial identifies drawbacks of this process.
In your response, analyze both the speech and the editorial to determine which position is best supported. Use relevant and specific evidence from both sources to support your response.
Type your response in the box. This task may require approximately 45 minutes to complete.
In the two autobiographies, the authors describe the challenges they must overcome to learn essential skills. Compare and contrast the challenges that each author faces and describe how each addresses those challenges. Use specific details from the two passages, Type your answer. This task may require approximately 45 minutes.
Do
What
Compare and contrast
Challenges each author faces
Describe
How each addressed the challenges
Use
Evidence from both passages
Type
Answer
Take
About 45 minutes
Quick Review
An Analysis of Daylight Savings Time
The article presents arguments from both supporters and critics of Daylight Saving Time who disagree about the practice’s impact on energy consumption and safety.
In your response, analyze both positions presented in the article to determine which one is best supported. Use relevant and specific evidence from the article to support your response.
Materials from GED Testing Service®
Let’s Develop a Thesis Statement
Thesis Statement = The main idea or main point of a written assignment.
Clearly identifies a topic
Contains an claim or stance on the topic
Creates a roadmap for the writing
Answers the question: “What am I trying to prove?”
Usually located in the introduction
Thesis Statement – What is the claim?
Looking at the arguments regarding this issue, it is clear that DST is beneficial to society in many ways.
Between the two positions in this article, the one against Daylight Saving Time is better supported through recent research and specific evidence.
Even though the studies used in the article date back to the 1970s, the positive effect of daylight savings time in reducing energy costs and improving pedestrian safety is well documented.
Start with Thesis Frames
Although _____________________ (believes, demonstrates, argues) that ____________________________________, _________________ supports/provides the clearest evidence _________________________.
Looking at the arguments regarding ____________, it is clear that _____________________________________________.
When comparing the two positions in this article, ____________ provides the clearest evidence that _________________________________________.
What supports the claim? - It’s the evidence!
Evidence - that which tends to prove or disprove something
Reasons and explanations
Facts, examples, statements, details
Key words – for example, however, because of this reason
Reasons, evidence, and explanation
What supports the claim? - It’s the evidence!
Sample evidence from the text(s)
“Research in the 1970s found that Daylight Savings Time saved about 1% per day in energy costs.”
“For example, it provides the results of a much more recent (2007) study in California.”
“…the points listed in the counter-argument are more relevant…the data is 37 years more relevant!”
In your response, develop an argument about how Senator Kennedy’s position in his speech reflects the enduring issue expressed in the quotation from the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780. Incorporate relevant and specific evidence from the quotation, the speech, and your own knowledge of the enduring issue and the circumstances surrounding Kennedy’s run for the presidency to support your analysis.
Type your response in the box. This task may require 25 minutes to complete.
What’s Your Claim
____________ position on _________________ is clearly supported by _______________ and _____________________.
_____________________ argues that ____________________________, which is supported by _____________________.
A key issue raised in both _________________________ and __________________ is that ______________________.
The long-standing position of ______________ is supported by __________ and _______________________.
In discussion of ______________________, one controversial issue has been ___________________. ________________ believes that _______________________ as supported by _________________________________.
What’s the Evidence?
What are key words, phrases, ideas that support the claim from the excerpts and from your personal background knowledge?
Text 1
Quotation
Text 2
Speech Excerpt
Background Knowledge
Extended Response Structure
Step 1: Analyze/Plan
Know
Do
Facts/Content
Support
What is the question about?
Underline or highlight important information
Identify and circle the performance verbs
What specific tasks is the question asking me to do?
What are the facts I need to provide to answer each part of the question
What are the supporting details that will help make my answer clear to the reader?
Step 2: Write your answer – Be sure to use the “RAS” Method for Written Response.
R: Restate the question
A: Answer the question using your notes
S: Support your answer with evidence (supporting details)
Step 3: Go back and review, revise, and edit your answer.
Prompt/Questions:
Restatement of question in own words
Sample answer
Detailed body of evidence that supports answer be sure to include enough details to answer the question. Make sure that all details address the questions and are not off-topic.
Restated question
Concluding thoughts
Next Step:
Select and Apply an Integrated Reading and Writing Strategy
Practices that Make a Difference
Dedicate time to writing and writing instruction across the curriculum.
Involve students in various forms of writing.
Treat writing as a process.
Keep students engaged.
Be enthusiastic about writing.
Practices that Make a Difference
Teach often to the whole class, in small groups, and with individual students.
Model, explain, and provide guided assistance.
Provide support, but move towards self-regulation.
Adapt writing assignments and instruction to meet student needs.
Set high expectations.
Questions, Insights, Suggestions
“High achievement always occurs in the framework of high expectation.”
