What is Rigor?

During Quarterly Meeting #2, we discussed rigor and what that means for our students.  Dr. Barbara Blackburn, author of Rigor is Not a Four-Letter Word and Rigor for Students with Special Needs, explains in this video what rigor "looks like" in the classroom.

Rigor is creating an environment in which each student is expected to learn at high levels, and each is supported so he or she can learn at high level, and each student demonstrates learning at high level.  (Blackburn, 2008).

The EQuIP Rubric

You will be hearing and reading more about the EQuIP Rubric as our understanding of the College and Career Ready Standards deepens. As we select and construct lesson plans for our students, we want to make sure that our efforts support these standards. The EQuIP Rubric is a solid resource that will guide us toward lessons/units that are of CCRS quality!

Background Information

The Tri‐State Collaborative (comprised of educational leaders from Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island) has developed criterion‐based rubrics and review processes to evaluate the quality of lessons and units intended to address the Common Core State Standards for ELA/Literacy and Mathematics.

The purposes of the EQuIP Rubric are to:

1. Provide clear, descriptive criteria for CCRS lessons/units
2. Provide meaningful, constructive feedback to developers of lessons/units
3. Identify lessons/units that can serve as models
4. Guide collegial review and lesson analysis

 Intended Use

The EQuIP Rubric is designed to analyze:

•        Lessons that include instructional activities and assessments aligned to the CCRS that may extend over a few class periods or days.
•  Units that include integrated and focused lessons aligned to the CCRS that extend over a longer period of time

   Formats

•       The one page format contains the entire rubric including dimensions and criteria.

•       The two page format is used during the review process and includes a column following each dimension for recording observations, comments and suggestions for improvement.

Your CCRS Homework

 Don't forget the follow-up piece from Quarterly Meeting #1.  Think forward about what you want to learn, practice, and share.  IF you need suggestions or feedback just let us know.  ALSO, if you had a teacher that went with you, buddy up with him/her!  WORK SMARTER not HARDER!

Three Key Shifts in ELA/Literacy

1.  Building knowledge through content-rich nonfiction and informational texts
2.  Reading, writing, and speaking grounded in evidence from text, both literary and informational
3.  Regular practice with complex text and its academic language

These touchstones are a great starting point for learning about and understanding the CCRS. How have you adjusted your expectations of students, what must be taught,  and how you teach?
                                                   From Quarterly Meeting #1

Goal Setting

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.

-----Thomas Jefferson------

Getting together with positive people can put us in the right frame of mind.  During our Quarterly Meetings, we have the opportunity to talk to other educators who are just like us- learning and implementing the CCRS in our schools. What a great opportunity to lift each other up!

Schedule for CCRS Quarterly Meetings

 Colbert County, Franklin County, Muscle Shoals City, 

Russellville  City, Walker County, Haleyville City, and  Jasper City

Quarterly Meeting 1        September 24, 2013
Quarterly Meeting 2        November 19, 2013
Quarterly Meeting 3        February 11, 2014
Quarterly Meeting 4        April 22, 2014

Florence City, Lauderdale County, Marion County, Sheffield City,  Tuscumbia City, Winfield City, and Winston County

Quarterly Meeting 1         September 26, 2013
Quarterly Meeting 2         November 21, 2013
Quarterly Meeting 3         February 13, 2014
Quarterly Meeting 4         April 24, 2014