by Thomas DeVere Wolsey & Elfrieda H. Hiebert

One of the great strengths of the Internet is its ability to bridge distances, and to close the geographic limitations of being in one place while something worthwhile occurs in a far distant location. TextProject is helping to bring thought leaders right to the screens of teachers and teacher candidates as they explore the Common Core State Standards (CCSS, 2010) and those standards mean for them and their teaching practices.

Not only are a series of six webinars recorded and available on the TextProject YouTube channel, but we have created webinar guides to help focus discussions teachers might have in professional learning communities, on their social media pages, and in the faculty lounge. Teacher educators may find these guides useful as an activity as they work with students preparing to become teachers. Three guides are currently available, and more will be in the coming weeks as the webinar series on the CCSS continues.

Each guide offers overview and background sections including definitions of important key terms, such as “close reading,” “technology-enhanced constructed response,” and so on. Listen and Learn activities include links to key portions of the webinars with purpose-setting questions. Reflect and Respond engages webinar viewers with key points in the broadcast that are relevant to teachers, and Extend and Apply asks teachers and teacher candidates to look at their own practices more closely in light of the webinar content or to continue the discussion through exploration of additional sources.Webinars in the CCSS series and Guides are listed here:

• January 25, 2013
  Research and the Common Core: Can the Romance Survive?
  Dr. P. David Pearson, University of California, Berkeley
  This presentation considers the research foundations of the Common Core State Standards, especially as it pertains to comprehension.
  Guide available
• February 27, 2013
  Common Core State Standards and Education Policy
  Timothy Shanahan, University of Illinois at Chicago
  Dr. Shanahan identifies tasks which states and districts must undertake to successfully implement the English/Language Arts Common Core standards.
  Guide available
• April 24, 2013
  Key Shifts in Assessment and Instruction Related to CCSS-ELA
  Dr. Karen K. Wixson, University of North Carolina at Greensboro
  Dr. Wixson presents on the upcoming assessments. She takes a close look at the sample questions and discusses the different question formats.
  Guide available
• May 30, 2013
  Informational Text and the CCSS: Pitfalls and Potential
  Dr. Nell K. Duke, University of Michigan
  Dr. Duke presents the pitfalls and potentials of the CCSS as it relates to informational texts. She explains the differences between previous and current definitions for key words used in the CCSS.
  Guide coming soon
• June 20, 2013
  Using Quantitative Measures of Text Complexity in Classroom Instruction: What’s Appropriate? What’s Not?
  Elfrieda H. Hiebert, TextProject & the University of California, Santa Cruz
  Dr. Hiebert presents information on using quantitative measures in the new Common Core Assessments.
  Guide coming soon
• August 28, 2013
  Stretching Elementary Students in Complex Texts: Why? How? When?
  Dr. Heidi Anne Mesmer, Virginia Tech University
  Dr. Mesmer presents information on stretching students to read complex texts.
  Guide coming soon
• September 26, 2013
  Going Beyond Text Complexity: Considering Text-Task Scenarios in Understanding Comprehension
  Dr. Sheila Valencia, University of Washington
  Dr. Valencia presents an expanded way of considering the relationship between comprehension and text complexity by examining text-task scenarios.
  Webinar and guide coming soon

Also, be sure to check out the TextProject’s 77 Seconds series in which Dr. Hiebert provides concise information on issues and approaches in literacy education.

Useful Links:

CCSS Webinars on TextProject YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0F32BE29849E98E1
CCSS Webinar Series information  page on TextProject: http://www.textproject.org/events/common-core-state-standards-webinar-series/
CCSS Webinar Guide on TextProject: http://www.textproject.org/professional-development/webinar-guide-series/
77 Seconds on Literacy Topics on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwIychIT3ICgmw59Hc-JaBdY5dpYMHIIs

Reference:

Common Core State Standards Initiative [CCSS]. (2010). Common Core State Standards for English language arts & Literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects. Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Governors Association. Retrieved from http://www.corestandards.org/assets/CCSSI_ELA%20Standards.pdf

Dr. Thomas DeVere Wolsey is a literacy specialization coordinator in the Richard W. Riley College of Education and Leadership at Walden University.

Dr. Elfrieda (Freddy) H. Hiebert is president and CEO of TextProject, Inc. and a research associate at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

This article is part of a series from the International Reading Association Technology in Literacy Education Special Interest Group (TILE-SIG).