Free Webinar on Using Videos in Teacher Preparation: Innovative Pedagogy for Doing What Works
This webinar is being offered by AACTE and is being held on Wednesday, March 21, 2014 from 2 – 3pm EDT. You can register for the event at this link.
Updated NJ Professional Standards for Teachers (posted May 9, 2014)
On April 1, 2014, NJ updated the Professional Standards for Teachers to more closely align with the 2011 Interstate Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC) Model Core Teaching Standards. NJ DOE provided an overview of the changes and a comparison between the 2004 NJ Standards and the revised 2014 NJ Standards. This link will take you to the full crosswalk between the NJ Professional Standards for Teachers and the InTASC standards. This link will take you to the NJDOE page for Professional Development for Teachers. It includes links and resources pertaining to the Professional Standards for Teachers and School Leaders.
Professional Development Provided by NJEA
Below are some examples of the free professional development opportunities that will be offered by the NJ DOE in the coming months. Click on this link to view the complete list. Early Childhood PD:
- Kindergarten Seminar
Research-based Kindergarten Best Practices for K Teachers & Administrators Date: January 17, 2014 Time: 9:30am to 2:30pm
- Powerful Interactions: Using Intentional Teaching in the Inclusive Preschool Classroom
Date/s: January 16, 2014 February 27, 2014 Time: 9:30am to 3:00pm LRC Central-Trenton, NJ 08625
ELA PD:
- Core Matters: Understanding and Utilizing Text Complexity
Date/s: January 15, 2014 Time: 8:30am to 2:30pm Gloucester County Community College
- Core Matters: Understanding and Utilizing Text Complexity
Date/s: January 21, 2014 Time: 8:30am to 2:30pm Middlesex County Community College
Widely Applicable Prerequisites for College and Careers
This table, found in the High School Publisher’s Criteria for Mathematics, lists content from the CCSS shown by research to be prerequisite to and applicable for a range of post-secondary work. This document can be used as guidance to inform instructional decisions regarding time and other resources.
The Toolkit for Evaluating Alignment of Instructional and Assessment Materials to the CCSS
This toolkit provides a complete set of tools to aid in the design and procurement of CCSS aligned instructional materials, including assessments. Having Common Core-aligned materials in place is a critical part of implementing the standards, supporting teacher effectiveness and enhancing student achievement. These tools were developed in partnership with Achieve a nd The Council of Chief State School Officers. The toolkit includes the following:
- Instructional Materials Evaluation Tool
- EQuIP Quality Review Rubric
- Assessment Evaluation Tool
- Assessment Passage and Item Quality Criteria Checklist
- Additional Resources for Evaluating Alignment of Instructional Materials
- Appendix: Publisher’s Criteria for the Common Core State Standards.
iTunes U Courses
The iTunes U courses were developed by a group of classroom teachers to explain the shifts in ELA/Literacy and Mathematics required by the Common Core. Presented in partnership with The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), they showcase a combination of materials from the Achieve the Core website as well as additional curated resources and interactive activities. These courses were designed to provide a robustself-learning opportunity for individual teachers and to offer high-quality, crediblematerials that can be used to support professional learning communities in schools. iTunes U ELA/Literacy Courses CCSS for Teachers: ELA/Literacy Shifts (K-2) CCSS for Teachers: ELA/Literacy Shifts (3-5) CCSS for Teachers: ELA/Literacy Shifts (6-8) CCSS for Teachers: ELA/Literacy Shifts (9-12)
iTunes U Math Courses
CCSS for Teachers: Math Shifts (K-5) CCSS for Teachers: Math Shifts (6-8) CCSS for Teachers: Math Shifts (9-12)
Common Core State Standards Instructional Practice Guides
These tools provide specific guidance for what the CCSS for ELA/Literacy and Mathematics look like in daily planning and practice. They are designed as developmental tools for teachers and those who support teachers. The Daily Guides can be used for teacher self-reflection, peer-to-peer observation and feedback, and instructional coaching. The Over the Course of the Year Guides can be used to facilitate planning and review of practice over a semester or year. There are CCSS Instructional Practice Guides for:
- ELA/Literacy
- K-2, 3-5, 6-12
- 6-12 Literacy in History/Social Studies
- 6-12 Literacy in Science & Technical Subjects
- Mathematics
- K-8
- High School
Student Growth Percentile (SGP) Overview
Under AchieveNJ, Student Growth Percentiles (SGPs) are one of the multiple measures used to assess teachers and principals whose students are in grades 4–8 and take the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge (NJ ASK) math or Language Arts Literacy (LAL) test. An SGP score compares a student’s academic growth on the NJ ASK from one year to the next to the growth made by that student’s academic peers (students from around the state with similar test score histories). This document developed by the NJDOE provides a good overview of SGPs for teachers and principals in New Jersey.
AchieveNJ: Teacher Evaluation Scoring Guide
The NJ Department of Education has created numerous tools and information to help educators navigate the changes in teacher evaluations, implementation of SGO’s, the Common Core State Standards along other areas of the AchieveNJ initiative. This presentation provides information on how districts compile evaluation ratings for teachers in AchieveNJ. Additional tools and resources are available on the NJDOE AchieveNJ site.
NJ Chief Academic Officer Presentation, CORE and PARCC
This presentation is by the NJ Chief Academic Officer on Obstacles and Opportunites in implementing the Common Core, PARCC standards and educator evaluations to improve student achievement.
Edcuator Resource Exchange for K-12 Educators
The Sate of New Jersey, in collaboration with the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), has developed a BETA version of the Educator Resource Exchange for Educators. It is a source of K-12 Educational Resources provided by educators and for educators. This newly developed and launched site can be found at www.njcore.org.
SGO’s as Required by the NJ DOE
As of September 2013, the NJ State Department of Education requires all teachers to develop Student Growth Outcomes (SGO’s). The following are several links and resources that help articulate the requirements, timeline and expectations of SGO implementation. SGO Guidebook developed by NJDOE FAQ’s on SGO’s as developed by NJDOE Timeline for SGO development and Implementation as developed by NJEA