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OER Institute
Self-Assessment, Vision-Setting, and Planning Resources
CC BY Achieve 2013
Introduction • These slides and related documents are based on exercises completed by seven states at the Open Educational Resources (OER) Institute in Chicago in November 2012 • Information and exercises were created by Achieve and the U.S. Education Delivery Institute (EDI), to help states consider their current progress and begin to create a plan for implementing OER :
2
For this effort, we suggest that there are five key areas on which to focus your planning
1
Setting a vision for OER
2
Creating a plan for implementation
3
Building an OER system
4
Communicating with and training educators
5
Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
3
To help you consider your plans… The OER Planning Framework includes templates to accompany the enclosed exercises to help your state begin to create a plan. These slides are meant to provide you with key definitions and ideas for completing the exercises. The planning framework is organized as follows: I. Reflecting on the current progress of OER initiatives – p.2 II. Setting a vision for OER – p.4 III. Creating a plan for implementation and building the OER system – p. 6 IV. Communicating with and training educators – p. 12 V. Monitoring progress and collecting feedback – p. 16
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Table of Contents Self-assessment……………………………………………….Slide 6 Setting a vision for OER…………………………………….Slide 9 Creating a plan for implementation………………….Slide 19 Building an OER system…………………………………….Slide 35 Communicating with and training educators…….Slide 39 Monitoring progress and collecting feedback……Slide 46 Identifying next steps……………………………………….Slide 52
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5
Begin by reflecting on the status of current OER work, using the following self-assessment
1
Setting a vision for OER
2
Creating a plan for implementation
3
Building an OER system
4
Communicating with and training educators
5
Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
6
Self-Assessment: Our Current Status on OER Initiatives Vote 1-4 indicating the extent to which you agree with the statements below (1=Strongly Disagree; 4= Strongly Agree) Setting a vision for OER
Creating a plan for implementation
Building an OER system
Communicating with and training educators
Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
We have a clear idea of what we want to do regarding Open Educational Resources We understand how we expect OER to impact classrooms and how OER fit into our larger plans for implementation of college and career ready standards The necessary people know, understand, and share our vision for our state’s OER system We have a clear plan for gathering materials, defining and ensuring quality, and making materials available to educators The plan includes a clear timeline for implementation and we have adequate resources to implement it The plan has a clear owner and the relevant people know and understand the plan We have created or have access to a venue for sharing open educational resources We have identified sources and methods for collecting and/or creating appropriate open educational resources We know how we will assess the quality of resources (including rubrics, responsible parties) We understand how our OER system will interact with those in other states We have identified the most important stakeholders to be engaged and informed of OER; we know what our key messages will be and have considered how those messages will reach each of our stakeholder groups We have considered how we will communicate the availability of the tool and train those in the field on using the technology and assessing quality We have mechanisms in place to regularly monitor our progress on implementing our OER plan We have identified feedback loops to collect information as to whether OER are having their intended impact in the field 7
Exercise: Reflect on the current status of OER initiatives What
How
Materials
Time
▪
Review the first row of the selfassessment and consider where your state falls on a scale of 1-4.
▪
▪
▪
5
▪
Discuss your votes and your rationale and try to come to consensus about the state’s current progress.
▪
In state teams
▪
10
▪
Repeat the process with the remaining four rows of the selfassessment.
▪
In state teams
▪
25
▪
Reflect on your final votes, discuss:
▪
In state teams
▪
10
Individually
▪
Self-assessment (slide 7) Planning framework template p. 3
▪ Do they indicate any particular areas of strength for your team? ▪ Any challenges? ▪ Based on these results, where should your team focus your work moving forward?
:
8
For this effort, we suggest that there are five key areas on which to focus your planning
1
Setting a vision for OER
2
Creating a plan for implementation
3
Building an OER system
4
Communicating with and training educators
5
Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
9
1 Setting a vision for OER
A vision will help you answer the question “what are we trying to do?”
A strong vision has several important characteristics:
• • • • •
It is lofty or ambitious in nature
•
It is shared widely and at all levels
It creates a sense of urgency among stakeholders Leaders believe it is attainable It captures the moral imperative of the work It can be summarized into one or more metrics that can be tracked over time
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1 Setting a vision for OER
And can be translated into targets that are SMART Specific
• Does it have a clear definition? • Is it straightforward to understand? • Can it be easily generated without complex calculations?
Measurable
• Is it easy to measure? Do people agree on measurement? • Do we have or can we collect the data required? • Can it be benchmarked against outside data? • Does the target feel like a “stretch” from the current level of
Ambitious
Realistic
performance? • Will it inspire your system to rise to a new challenge?
• Is it connected to the strategy? • Are there benchmarks that suggest a target like this has been achieved elsewhere?
Timely
• Does it have a clear deadline? • Can it be measured at a frequency that will allow us to solve problems and track success? 11
1 Setting a vision for OER
For example…
Donald Berwick, doctor and CEO of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI): “Here is what I think we should do. I think we should save 100,000 lives. And I think we should to that by June 14, 2006 – 18 months from today. Some is not a number; soon is not a time. Here’s the number: 100,000. Here’s the time: June 14, 2006 – 9 a.m.” IHI recommended six specific interventions for hospitals to help them achieve that vision.
Source: Chip Heath and Dan Heath, Switch, 2010, p.19-21.
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1 Setting a vision for OER
For example… Donald Berwick on June 14, 2006, at 9:00 a.m.: “Hospitals enrolled in the 100,000 Lives Campaign have collectively prevented an estimated 122,300 avoidable deaths and, as importantly, have begun to institutionalize new standards of care that will continue to save lives and improve health outcomes in the future.”
Source: Chip Heath and Dan Heath, Switch, 2010, p.19-21.
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1 Setting a vision for OER
A vision is notably different than a mission statement Vision Statement
Mission Statement
▪
A vision statement is inspirational and tells you where work is headed.
▪
A mission statement describes the fundamental purpose and primary objectives.
▪
It communicates the aspiration, purpose, and values.
▪
It articulates purpose and defines how that purpose will be achieved.
▪
It answers the questions:
▪
It answers the questions:
– What are we trying to
do? – Why are you doing what you are doing? – What will be the impact on teachers and students?
– How do we intend to
achieve our vision? – What does the work look like? – What are the key measures of success?
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1 Setting a vision for OER
Additional examples of vision statements Hilton Worldwide: Our vision is to fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality. Nike:
To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world.* *If you have a body, you are an athlete. Marine Corps:
The Marine Corps of 2025 will fight and win our Nation’s battles with multicapable MAGTFs, either from the sea or in sustained operations ashore. Our unique role as the Nation’s force in readiness, along with our values, enduring ethos, and core competencies, will ensure we remain highly responsive to the needs of combatant commanders in an uncertain environment and against Irregular threats. Our future Corps will be increasingly reliant on naval deployment, preventative in approach, leaner in equipment, versatile in capabilities, and innovative in mindset. In an evolving and complex world, we will excel as the Nation’s expeditionary “force of choice.” Source: http://www.hiltonworldwide.com/about/mission/; http://nikeinc.com/pages/about-nike-inc; http://www.quantico.usmc.mil
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1 Setting a vision for OER
Additional examples of vision statements Arkansas’s Vision for Common Core:
All students in every Arkansas classroom will be engaged daily in rigorous learning experiences that build on students’ talents, challenge their skills and understandings, and develop their ability to reason, problem solve, collaborate, and communicate. Students will monitor their learning and direct their thinking to become productive and contributing team members. Students will grapple with complex texts and problems, construct viable arguments, and persist until solutions are identified and substantiated. Through these learning experiences, students will be confident in their preparation for success in their post-school lives, including college and career. Adults who are also continuously learning will support students as they prepare for college and careers. They will understand the purpose of and utilize formative assessments to provide feedback and support to student learners. Instruction will be founded on best practices grounded in research or evidence. Stakeholders will convey and support the vision by providing learning opportunities through in-school and out-of-school settings that strengthen and assist student learners.
Source: http://commoncore.aetn.org/strategic-plan/CCSS%20Vision%20and %20Principles.pdf
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1 Setting a vision for OER
The vision and the associated activities you expect will achieve your vision will become the foundation of your plan A strong vision has several important characteristics: Vision
Activity Activity
Activity Activity
Activity Activity
Activity Activity
Activity Activity
Activity Activity
Activity Activity
Plan
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Exercise: Setting or articulating a vision for OER in your state First, discuss…
Then complete the activity…
▪
Keeping in mind the state’s current work on instructional materials, reflect on your ideal vision of OER in your state. Record your answer on a sticky note.
▪
Discuss the various responses, what you like about others, and what you would change. Try to unite them into one common vision for your state and record that.
▪
Discuss in your state team and record notes on p.5 of the Planning Framework template:
▪ What plans and priorities already exist that you know of about curriculum, instructional materials, assessments, accountability, Race to the Top, etc.?
▪ Are there opportunities to
coordinate the OER work with these existing plans?
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ :
What impact do you expect OER to have on teachers? On students? How will you measure success for each group? Who do you need to share this vision with? How will you get them to buy in to the vision? 18
For this effort, we suggest that there are five key areas on which to focus your planning
1
Setting a vision for OER
2
Creating a plan for implementation
3
Building an OER system
4
Communicating with and training educators
5
Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
19
2 Creating a plan for implementation
We believe that a plan is necessary for successful implementation
“A goal without a plan is just a wish.� - Antoine de Saint-Exupery
:
20
2 Creating a plan for implementation
Characteristics of a strong implementation plan A strong implementation plan should… • Articulate a vision • Identify the relevant strategies or activities • Assign leadership • Set targets and milestones • Identify the chain through which strategies must reach the field • Anticipate and prepare for risks • Identify feedback loops for managing performance • Describe the resources and support required
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2 Creating a plan for implementation
You have already started the vision piece of this work A strong implementation plan should… • Articulate a vision • Identify the relevant strategies or activities • Assign leadership • Set targets and milestones • Identify the chain through which strategies must reach the field • Anticipate and prepare for risks • Identify feedback loops for managing performance • Describe the resources and support required
22
2 Creating a plan for implementation
It may help to consider these questions when creating your activities Access
Resources
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
What portal or venue will you use to share resources? Is there an existing venue you can use? How will you handle licensing/copyright? How “open” will materials be? How will you address technology infrastructure challenges? How will you gather/create materials? How will you work with vendors in the environment of openness and common standards?
Quality
▪ ▪
How will you define quality? What rubrics will you use? How will you evaluate quality? Who will be responsible for evaluating?
Policy
▪
How will you work within or address curriculum and textbook adoption policies and funding restrictions?
Potential Collaboration
▪
Do you plan to collaborate and share resources with other states? If so, how? 23
Exercise: Identifying and addressing our planning challenges What
How
Materials
▪ Brainstorm: What are the major
▪ In state
▪ Planning
▪
strategies or activities we have or need to put in place in order to achieve our OER vision – Use the list of questions in the planning framework template p. 7 as a guide Discuss the following:
teams
framework template p. 7
▪ What policy barriers might we face in implementing these activities? ▪ What other barriers or challenges are associated with each? ▪ Keeping in mind the cross-state sessions, what key actions might we take ▪
to address those challenges? What allies or stakeholders should we call upon?
:
24
2 Creating a plan for implementation
You’re now a step closer to building a strong plan A strong implementation plan should… • Articulate a vision • Identify the relevant strategies or activities • Assign leadership • Set targets and milestones • Identify the chain through which strategies must reach the field • Anticipate and prepare for risks • Identify feedback loops for managing performance • Describe the resources and support required 25
2 Creating a plan for implementation
A delivery chain will help you explore the activities in your plan more deeply
A delivery chain is the set of actors (people or organizations), and the relationships between them, through which a given system activity will be implemented.
A delivery chain has one question at its core: Starting from the policy intent of a leader in your system and ending with the frontline behaviors and practices that this policy is designed to influence, how – and through whom – does a system activity actually happen?
2 Creating a plan for implementation
The first step in constructing the delivery chain is to identify all of the key actors Sample delivery chain: Professional Development for CCSS State
Region/ County
Chief
Regional committees 1
Curriculum/ instruction team 1
15
District
School
Curriculum directors 150
Classroom
PLC Facilitators 400
Teachers 65,000
Principals 700
27
2 Creating a plan for implementation
Next, draw the single most important line of influence between the system and the student Sample delivery chain: Professional Development for CCSS Region/ County
District
School PLC Facilitators
Curriculum/ instruction team 1
Regional committees 15
Train by 12/2011
Manage
Train by 9/2011
1 Curriculum directors 150
Train by 5/2012
Chief
Classroom
400 Principals 400
Teachers Train by 9/2013
State
65,000 Teachers 65,000
Be sure to identify the specific relationships represented by the arrows
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2 Creating a plan for implementation
Then, identify and draw secondary lines connecting other actors that need to be involved Sample delivery chain: Professional Development for CCSS Region/ County
District
School PLC Facilitators
Curriculum/ instruction team 1
Approve by 9/2011
Regional committees 15
Train by 12/2011
Manage
Train by 9/2011
1 Curriculum directors 150
Train by 5/2012
Chief
Classroom
Give incentives to choose “approved� providers by 9/2011 Approved providers 25 Manage PD instructors 25
400 Principals 400
Teachers Train by 9/2013
State
65,000 Teachers 65,000
Principals 700 Contract by 6/2012 Teachers Train by 9/2013
65,000 29
2 Creating a plan for implementation
You’re now a step closer to building a strong plan A strong implementation plan should… • Articulate a vision • Identify the relevant strategies or activities • Assign leadership • Set targets and milestones • Identify the chain through which strategies must reach the field • Anticipate and prepare for risks • Identify feedback loops for managing performance • Describe the resources and support required 30
2 Creating a plan for implementation
Once created, the delivery chain can help you with other parts of the planning process, such a identifying challenges Individual relationships
Complexity
Weaknesses in chain • Weak personal relationships • Low leverage
• Too many actors necessary to get something done
Potential solutions • Identify and replicate stronger relationships of this type • Identify alternate routes to the end of the chain • “Rationalize” chain • Identify alternate routes to the end of the chain
Funding flows • Mismatch between resource flows and delivery chain
• Redesign chain to take advantage of leverage from resource flows
Feedback loops
• Few or no feedback loops
• Create feedback loops • Use feedback loops to exert influence
Choke points
• Over-reliance on a few key actors
• Build capacity/cooperation of key actors • Identify alternate routes to the end of the chain
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Exercise: Creating a delivery chain for one key activity What
How
▪ Identify one key activity on which
▪ In state
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
your team will focus Identify the beginning and the end of the delivery chain for that activity, record them on cards or sticky notes Brainstorm the other actors in the chain, record them on cards or sticky notes Draw lines indicating the relationship between each; describe the relationships between each Discuss:
▪ ▪
Materials
teams
▪ Colored cards ▪ ▪
or sticky notes Markers Flipchart paper
Time
▪ 60
Are there any potential areas of weakness in the chain? Chokepoints? Broken connections? How would you address those challenges? :
32
2 Creating a plan for implementation
You’re now a step closer to building a strong plan A strong implementation plan should… • Articulate a vision • Identify the relevant strategies or activities • Assign leadership • Set targets and milestones • Identify the chain through which strategies must reach the field • Anticipate and prepare for risks • Identify feedback loops for managing performance • Describe the resources and support required 33
Exercise: Describing your activities What
How
▪
▪
For each of the priority activities you identified in Exercise IIIa, identify: – Responsible owners – Methods for reaching the field (delivery chain) – Methods for measuring success – Potential risks or challenges and plans for mitigating them – Necessary resources – Connection to the broader work of implementing college and career ready standards
Materials
In state teams
:
▪ ▪ ▪
Flip chart paper Markers Planning framework template p.9
Time
▪
60
34
Finally, you should articulate the timeline – including key milestones – for your OER project • The timeline will help you monitor whether your plan is on-track • It may be useful to start with an end date, then work backward from there • Consider the following when establishing your timeline: – Are any of your activities time-sensitive? – What timelines already exist for rolling out instructional materials or professional development that you should be aware of?
:
35
Exercise: Plotting your timeline What
How
▪
▪
For your overall plan, consider and record on the template: – Who is responsible for the overall OER strategy? – What is the timeline for implementing priority activities?
Materials
In state teams
:
▪ ▪ ▪
Flip chart paper Markers Planning framework template p. 11
Time
▪
60
36
For this effort, we suggest that there are five key areas on which to focus your planning
1
Setting a vision for OER
2
Creating a plan for implementation
3
Building an OER system
4
Communicating with and training educators
5
Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
37
Finally, you will begin to put your plan into action This involves taking each element of your plan and putting it into action
From making decisions about:
▪ Access ▪ Resources ▪ Quality ▪ Policy ▪ Potential collaboration
To creating, communicating, and changing: ▪ Access ▪ Resources ▪ Quality ▪ Policy ▪ Potential collaboration
38
For this effort, we suggest that there are five key areas on which to focus your planning
1
Setting a vision for OER
2
Creating a plan for implementation
3
Building an OER system
4
Communicating with and training educators
5
Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
39
4 Communicating with and training educators
Consider what you want educators to be able to do, then consider how you can train them accordingly
Questions to consider •
•
•
What role do you want teachers to play? • Will they need to evaluate resources? • Contribute resources? • Access? What role do you want school and district leaders to play? • Will they need to train teachers? • Spread awareness of OER? Are there other educators who need to be involved? How?
• What will each group need to know and be able to do in order to fulfill those roles?
•
Therefore what kind of training will each need? What training opportunities already exist or are scheduled that you can build upon?
40
4 Communicating with and training educators
Then consider other stakeholders who need to be aware of OER Types of stakeholders
Questions to consider
▪ Internal (inside your
▪ Who is directly responsible
agency) ▪ External (other players at the state level) ▪ The field (players in the delivery chain)
for helping the work get done? ▪ Who has indirect influence on the work or is influenced by it?
41
4 Communicating with and training educators
Tailor your communications approach based on the stakeholders current level of support Invest to win them over
▪
Make them your champions
▪
Make sure they do not block the effort
▪
Reach out if it will be helpful
High Low
How critical are they to the work?
▪
Low
High
What is their level of support? 42
4 Communicating with and training educators
When tailoring your message to stakeholders, consider the following questions
1. Why are we changing? 2. Where are we going? 3. What will it change? 4. Why choose this course? 5. What does this mean for you?
43
Exercise: Identifying the key roles of educators and planning to train them What
How
▪
▪
▪ ▪
Consider how teachers should be engaged in the OER work: – What role do you want them to play? – What do they need to know, understand, or be able to do in order to play that role? – What kind of training do they need in order to play that role? Are there existing training opportunities you can take advantage of? Repeat the process for school and district leaders Consider any other groups that will play key roles and need to be trained
Materials
In state teams
:
▪ ▪ ▪
Flip chart paper Markers Planning framework template p. 13
Time
▪
60
44
Exercise: Planning for communications to key stakeholders What
How
▪
▪
▪
Brainstorm the stakeholders who will need to be aware of OER or communicated with in some way For each stakeholder, identify: – What is this stakeholder’s current level of engagement? High, medium, or low? – Ideally, what would the engagement of this stakeholder look like? – How will you engage this stakeholder? – What is your core message to this stakeholder? – How will you know the messages are reaching the stakeholder?
Materials
In state teams
:
▪ ▪ ▪
Flip chart paper Markers Planning framework template p. 15
Time
▪
60
45
For this effort, we suggest that there are five key areas on which to focus your planning
1
Setting a vision for OER
2
Creating a plan for implementation
3
Building an OER system
4
Communicating with and training educators
5
Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
46
5 Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
There are four main types of metrics that you can use to measure progress Description
Sample metrics
Processes and milestones
Extent to which the processes and milestones occur as they were intended to do
▪
User satisfaction
Extent to which front line and/or end users have a positive view of the strategy’s impact on their work
▪
Number of teachers and/or principals expressing satisfaction with available open educational resources
Extent to which those near the “end” of the delivery chain change their practices as intended by the strategy
▪
Self-reporting or observations of changed practice by teachers who use OER (versus those who have not)
▪
Extent to which students who are exposed to changed practices demonstrate better results than those who are not
▪
Self-reporting of use of OER by teachers who received training (versus those who have not) Formative or summative assessment data, comparing teachers who regularly use OER with those who do not
Change in front line practice
Impact on student outcomes
▪
OER system available to educators when planned Number of teachers and/or principals receiving training on OER
47
5 Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
You can use the delivery chain you created earlier to inform the type of data you want to collect Example measures from delivery chain (professional development, see slide 28-30)
Potential ways to collect data
1 Number of districts undergoing training
▪
Fold into district monthly reporting
2 Number of teachers trained by school officials
▪ ▪
Fold into district monthly reporting Collect directly from schools
3 Number of teachers trained by approved providers
▪
Include a requirement for reporting on this information in vendor contracts
4 Number of teachers satisfied with training
▪
Add relevant questions to existing school climate survey
5 Number of teachers trained whose observed practices are changing
▪
Extrapolate from sample focus groups of principals, as well as existing principal advisory group
6 Difference in formative assessment gains for students with trained teachers vs. untrained
▪
Formative assessment data combined with survey self-reporting of adoption in classrooms 48
5 Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
Once you have established metrics, you should consider how you will review progress on those metrics Routines are a good way to regularly monitor progress
▪ What are routines?
▪ ▪
▪ What purpose do routines serve?
▪ ▪
Regularly scheduled checkpoints to assess if implementation is on track Engine that drives the work forward: Without routines, the work could stall or eventually fall off the agenda A source of structure and discipline to create order in complicated implementation work
Monitor performance: Understand if the work is on track to deliver on the vision, based on data on implementation milestones and student outcomes Diagnose problems: Surface issues that are inhibiting progress and analyze data to pinpoint causes Address problems: Provide a venue to discuss and decide how to overcome challenges
49
5 Monitoring progress and collecting feedback
Characteristics of strong routines ▪
▪
▪ ▪ ▪
Agreeing on a common purpose – Goals and outcomes (particularly teacher or student outcomes) anchor the discussion – Agenda, key messages and discussion questions, and relevant data are clear, concise, and well-prepared Arriving at a shared view of performance and progress – A wide range of evidence is presented in a way that is clear, sharp, and consistent, including: ▫ Outcome data ▫ Leading indicator data ▫ Evidence on the quality of implementation Identifying and solving problems – All participants reflect on what barriers exist and what it will take to overcome them Encouraging learning and collaboration – Opportunities exist for learning and sharing across peers, including common challenges and best practices Identifying and committing to clear next steps – Next steps with responsible parties are identified – Next steps are tracked and become evidence of progress and performance in future routines 50
Exercise: Discussing methods for monitoring progress and collecting feedback What
How
▪ Consider how you will measure the
▪
▪
▪
success of your OER work overall (should be inspired by the vision) Determine any feedback loops you will use to know whether your activities are having their intended impact (should be pulled from the individual activity descriptions (Exercise IIIb), if you have completed them Discuss: – How often will we check in on our success? – How will we check in (in person, by email, written note, phone call, other)? – Who should be involved in these check-ins? – Who is responsible? – What data will be reviewed?
Materials
In state teams
:
▪ ▪ ▪
Flip chart paper Markers Planning framework template p. 17
Time
▪
80
51
Exercise: Identifying our next steps What
How
Materials
Time
▪
▪
▪
▪
Reflect on your discussions you have had while completing these exercises: – What are our immediate next steps to complete this plan and put it into action? – Are there particular people we need to talk to? Discussions to have? Decisions to be made? – Who is responsible for ensuring these next steps are completed? Are there deadlines?
In state teams
Flip chart paper
15
A reference for more information Achieve and EDI created a workbook for Common Core implementation more broadly, which has additional narrative, examples, and exercises for planning and implementation: http://www.achieve.org/ImplementingCommonCore
:
53
Thank you! www.achieve.org www.deliveryinstitute.org
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