College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS) Resources
The College and Career Readiness Standards for Adult Education (CCRS) are a subset of the Common Core State Standards that reflect broad agreement among subject matter experts in adult education about what adult students need to know to be prepared for the rigors of post-secondary education and the workplace. Pennsylvania adult education programs are expected to use CCRS-based lessons and assignments as the core of instruction.
Below are tools, resources, and on-demand professional development modules to support the use of the CCRS. Resources are organized by category. If you are not sure where to begin, talk to your in-house professional development specialist or use the suggestions provided in the guide below:
Section 1 - Depth of Knowledge
Depth of Knowledge
Webb’s Depth of Knowledge (DOK) is a way to categorize the types of tasks that students are asked to complete based upon the thinking skills needed to perform the.
- Video: Introduction to DOK (YouTube)
- Chart: DOK levels with action verbs associated with each level
Section 2 - Unpacking the Standards
Unpacking Standards
The unpacking process is a way to learn more about the College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS) and consider what type of instructional activity might support students leaning the skills addressed in the standards.
- Webinar recording: Unpacking the Math Standards
- Webinar recording: Unpacking the English Language Arts Standards
- Resource: Chart for Unpacking the Components of Standards
- Example: Sample Chart for Unpacking the Components of Standards
- Resource: Template for Unpacking Standards
Section 3 - Introduction to the CCRS and Key Shifts
Introduction to the College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS)
These modules will introduce participants to the structure and layout of the College and Career Readiness Standards, including the levels, content areas, and labels. Participants will learn the benefits of using the CCRS and how the standards apply to lesson planning and teaching adult learners.
Please note: If you are interested in using any of these modules as part of the Staff Induction Process, enroll in the same module in the PD Portal rather than viewing it here for tracking purposes.
- On-Demand Module: College and Career Readiness Standards Overview – English Language Arts
- On-Demand Module: College and Career Readiness Standards Overview – Math COMING SOON
Instruction Advances
The College and Career Readiness Standards identify instructional practices that should be incorporated into teaching. The key practices are:
- English Language Arts (ELA) – Text Complexity, Evidence, and Building Knowledge
- Mathematics – Focus, Coherence, and Rigor
Mathematics also has a set of eight math practices that students should be demonstrating as they solve math problems.
- On-Demand Module: College and Career Readiness Key Shifts for English Language Arts NEW
- On-Demand Module: College and Career Readiness Key Shifts for Mathematics COMING SOON
- Advanced Self-Study: Guide to Creating Text-Dependent Questions from Achieve the Core
Section 4 - Lesson Revision and Resource Alignment
Lesson Revision and Resources Alignment
The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE) developed a process and tools that adult education practitioners can use to evaluate instructional resources to determine how well they align to the CCRS and identify ways that the instructional resources can be revised to improve alignment.
- On-Demand Module: Introduction to the CCRS
Resources for English Language Arts (ELA) Resource Alignment and Revision
- On-Demand Module: Using the CCRS ELA Resource Alignment Tool to Look at Text Complexity
- On-Demand Module: Using the CCRS ELA Resource Alignment Tool to Look at Evidence
- On-Demand Module: Using the CCRS ELA Resource Alignment Took to Look at Knowledge
- On-Demand Module: Aligning Lessons to the College and Career Readiness Standards – ELA
- ELA Tool 1: Resource Alignment Tool
- ELA Tool 2: Quantitative Analysis Tools
- ELA Tool 3: Quantitative Analysis Chart for Determining Text Complexity
- ELA Tool 4: Checklist for Evaluating Question Quality
- ELA Tool 5: Checklist to Guide Lesson Development and Revision
- ELA Tool 6: Qualitative Analysis Rubric
- ELA Tool 7: Promoting the Volume of Reading
- ELA Tool 8: Sample Lesson and RFK Speech
- Resource: CCRS Text Dependent Question Stems
- Resource: DOK Levels Chart
Resources for Math Resources Alignment and Revision
- On-Demand Module: Using the Math Resource Alignment Tool
- On-Demand Module: Aligning Lessons to the College and Career Readiness Standards – Math
- Math Tool 1: Resource Alignment
- Math Tool 2: Math Content Progressions
- Math Tool 3: Standards for Math Practices
- Math Tool 3a: Math Tool 3 Math Practice Look-Fors
- Math Tool 4: Major Work of the Level
- Math Tool 4a: Major Work of the Level Worksheet
- Math Tool 5: Lesson Revision Template
- Math Tool 6: Checklist for Lesson Development
Section 5 - Focus on Student Work and Assignments
Focus on Student Work and Assignments
By looking at the work that students complete on assignments, we are able to gather additional information about how well the students understood the content, how well they are meeting the standard, and how the assignment can be improved to help student mastery of new skills.
- On-Demand Module: Assessing the Implementation of the College and Career Readiness Standards in Adult Education Classrooms – Focusing on Assignments and Student Work
- Tool: Student Work Protocol for English Language Arts/Literacy
- Tool: Student Work Protocol for Mathematics
- Resource: Guide for Choosing Assignments and Student Work
- Resource: Overview of Critical Friends
- Resource: Critical Friends Feedback Checklists
Section 6 - CCRS and ESL
CCRS and ESL
The CCRS tools in the sections above can be used to prepare standards-base ESL lessons with little to no adaption. In addition to the CCRS, ESL teachers may wish to view the English Language Proficiency Standards for Adult Education
Section 7 - Lesson Study Protocol
Lesson Study Protocol
Helps teachers refine their practice through a systematic analysis of the planning and execution of lessons.
- On-Demand Module: Lesson Study Protocol
- Math Tool 9: Math Lesson Study Protocol
- ELA Tool 9: ELA Lesson Study Protocol
- Resource: Overview of Critical Friends Model
- Resource: Critical Friends Feedback Checklist
Section 8 - General CCRS Resources for Teaching and Lesson Planning
General CCRS Resources for Teaching and Lesson Planning
There is a wide variety of CCRS tools and resources available to support the use of the standards in your instruction.
- Resource: Lesson Bank
- ELA/Math/ESL Lesson Plan Template
- Resource: CCRS and the Pennsylvania Standards Aligned System (SAS) Resource Crosswalk
- Resource: Career Awareness Context Checklist for College and Career Readiness
- Resource: Foundation Skills and CCRS Alignments – Reads with Understanding
- Resource: Foundation Skills and CCRS Alignments – Applies Mathematical Operations, Concepts, and Reasoning
- Resource: Foundation Skills and CCRS Alignments – Listens with Understanding
- Resource: Foundation Skills and CCRS Alignments – Speaks Clearly and Concisely
- Resource: Foundation Skills and CCRS Alignments – Writes Clearly and Concisely
- Resource: Luzerne County Community College CCRS Summary Sheet
Section 9 - Facilitator Guides
Facilitator Guides
The Facilitator Guides can support your local agency’s efforts to learn more about the standards and implement them into teaching.
- Facilitator Guide: ELA Resource Alignment and Lesson Development, and Revision Facilitator Guide
- Facilitator Guide: Math Resource Alignment and Lesson Development, and Revision Facilitator Guide
- Facilitator Guide: Math Student Work Protocol Facilitator Guide
- Facilitator Guide: ELA Student Work Protocol Facilitator Guide
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