Resources to Help Implement Common Core

Resources to Help Implement Common Core

As schools and districts prepare for the upcoming Common Core State Standards (CCSS), some have voiced that there have been very few professional development resources available to help explain the changes. Educational publishers have been scrambling to develop training materials, and many districts have created their own. Now that we are just past the mid-year point in the 2012-2013 school year, we are finding that more professional development material is becoming available.

In a recent paper called Fulfilling the Promise of the Common Core State Standards, ASCD (formerly the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development), notes that not only do educators require advice on choosing new curriculum tools, they also need counsel on how to incorporate the tools they already have to meet the new standards. And what does that mean for all the audiovisual and other technology tools that schools have invested in?

While the intended learning outcomes may shift with full implementation of the Common Core, it is unlikely that the role of multimedia will be reduced. There is too much evidence that using technology to assist or enrich instruction is beneficial in engaging students and helping them learn more effectively. If anything, the CCSS will mean greater independence for students to take responsibility for their own learning – making tools such as Califone headsets and wireless listening systems even more important than they are currently.

ASCD recommends the following sites for helpful, free professional development on transition to the Common Core:

https://www.youtube.com/user/TheHuntInstitute#g/u

www.ascd.org/commoncorewebinars

www.achievethecore.org

https://educore.ascd.org

There is no such thing as too much professional development. But most educators either don’t have access or don’t have time to invest in lengthy PD programs. Fortunately, a number of educational foundations, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have funded the development of videos and other tools to help make the transition to Common Core a little easier.