


Teaching & Learning 21
September 2023
News & Updates from PDE
Act 35 - Civics Assessment
The 2022-23 Act 35 reporting opened in the Future Ready Comprehensive Planning Portal (FRCPP) on July 3, 2023, with a deadline of October 2, 2023. Act 35 requirements began in the 2020-21 school year and requires each district, charter school, and comprehensive CTC to administer a locally developed assessment of United States history, government and civics. The assessment must be administered at least once to students in grades 7-12 and must include the nature, purpose, principles, and structure of United States constitutional democracy, the principles, operations and documents of United States government, and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.
The data to be collected in the FRCPP system includes:
- Type of the assessment administered
- Total number of students who took the assessment
- Total number of students who attained a passing grade on the assessment
- Grade level or levels in which the assessment was administered
- Course or course in which the assessment was administered
- Number of students scoring 100% on the assessment
You can find more information on Act 35, including guidelines for accessing and submitting your data at this page. Scroll to the bottom of the page and open the “Act 35 Reporting Guidelines” document. You may also find the “Frequently Asked Questions” document useful as well.
Note that if your charter school does not encompass grades 7-12, you are exempt from this submission. However, if your school includes at least one grade level 7-12, this legislation applies to your LEA. Submission is also required for IUs that provide civics instruction on behalf of their LEAs, as well as comprehensive CTC schools.
Attract, Prepare, Retain
ASL Courses for HS Students
Do you have students interested in learning American Sign Language to fulfill their World Language requirement? We are excited to announce that the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of Special Education is collaborating with Appalachia Intermediate Unit 8, World of Learning Institute to provide secondary students across Pennsylvania virtual courses to learn American Sign Language (ASL). Courses are available to students who demonstrate an interest in ASL as a World/Foreign Language. ASL courses may lead students to pursue the field of Special Education as a teacher or interpreter in the future. To ensure equal access, the distribution of seats across the commonwealth will be prioritized.
This opportunity, as a part of the BSE’s effort to attract students to careers in special education, will be at no cost to students or Local Education Agencies for the 2023-2024 school year. Seats are limited. Register by contacting Pat Mulroy, pmulroy@iu08.org.
News from the College Board
AP
Planning for a Digital AP Exam Administration
Thursday, September 14, 12pm-1pm
Digital AP® Exams simplify the testing experience for students and proctors. Last year, 3,600 schools administered 320,000 digital AP Exams. This year, your school has a digital option in seven AP Exam subjects, including both AP English and all three AP History subjects, AP Seminar, and AP Computer Science Principles. Also, the AP African American Studies Exam, only available to schools participating in the 2023-24 pilot, is in digital format. (For details about digital AP Exams, visit cb.org/ap-2024-digital.)
During this webinar, you’ll hear from an experienced administrator describe the factors they considered before shifting to digital AP testing. Learn how their district and schools planned and prepared for a successful digital AP Exam administration.
AP Classroom for Principals
Co-sponsored by PARSS and the PA Principals Association
Wednesday, October 4, 9am-10am
AP Classroom is a collection of resources that distinguishes AP from other advanced coursework opportunities. It provides all-in-one teaching support with resources that can help teachers plan, create assignments and practice quizzes, and track student progress and results. During this session, principals will learn about the resources available to AP teachers in AP Classroom. We will discuss how to coach and monitor teacher and student usage of these resources.
Register at https://collegeboard.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMkdumvrjsjGdEpeOF8QYh_wOPzAUd5dRUL#/registration.
AP Teacher Week
AP Teacher Week ran from August 1 through August 4. Free video sessions provide insights into best practices for using AP Classroom resources on the AP Educators channel on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/apeducators). Sessions are about 30-45 minutes in length. All sessions were recorded and will be available for all AP teachers, as well as school and district administrators, to watch on-demand at any time throughout the school year.
Topics
- What’s New: Key Updates for 2023-24
- Providing Instructional Support: AP Daily, Topic Questions, and Progress Checks
- English
- History and the Arts
- Math and Computer Science
- Sciences
- Social Sciences
- World Languages
- Question Bank: The Right Question at the Right Time
- English
- History and the Arts
- Math and Computer Science
- Sciences
- Social Sciences
- World Languages
- Interpreting Student Data: What’s Next?
- All Courses
*Where multiple course categories are listed, there will be separate videos geared toward that specific academic discipline.
**For its launch year in 2023-24, AP Precalculus will have separate videos for each topic. The August 1 video is entitled AP Instructional Resources: A Brief Tour of AP Classroom. All other videos for AP Precalculus have the same titles listed above.
PSAT/SAT
Reminder: Ordering Deadlines for Digital PSAT/NMSQT and PSAT 8/9
The deadline to order assessments for the digital PSAT/NMSQT and PSAT 8/9 is based on when you plan to begin testing your students. You’ll be asked to provide your intended testing data in SSOR.
Test Date --> Order By
October 2 --> August 28
October 9 --> September 5
October 16 --> September 11
October 23 (includes October 30/21) --> September 18
For additional dates and deadlines, visit PSAT/NMSQT and/or PSAT 8/9.
We understand that introducing change to our assessments in fall 2023 can cause some anxiety and we want to make sure that you and your staff feel as prepared as possible. To guide you through these changes, we are happy to share with you the In-School Educator Experience website - https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/k12-educators/educator-experience.
At this website, you can read through the 3 steps leading up to test day as well as find all the resources you’ll need including guides for test coordinators, proctors, SSD coordinators and technology monitors.
As registration opens for the PSAT-related assessments this September, please note you can find all the information you need on registration at https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/k12-educators/educator-experience/get-to-know-digital/ordering-registration.
BigFuture
Guiding Students on Life After High School (hosted by PA Career Ready)
Wednesday, September 20, 10am-11am
Helping students find the right next step after high school doesn’t have to be stressful. College Board’s tools can support students in exploring, evaluating, and planning for multiple paths to a good career. During this webinar, you’ll learn about the career connections tools that the College Board provides both through the new digital SAT Suite of Assessments as well as through BigFuture, a free online resource to help students plan for college, pay for college, and explore careers.
Register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/guiding-students-on-life-after-high-school-tickets-681794063397?aff=oddtdtcreator.
BigFuture Scholarships - $40,000 winner from Pennsylvania!
Congrats to our latest BigFuture $40,000 winner from Pennsylvania, Rocco from Gateway High School. Rocco is the 7th BigFuture $40K winner from Pennsylvania since March 2022.
To share in this inspiring moment, be sure to watch the video of Rocco’s surprise at https://www.cbsnews.com/pittsburgh/news/gateway-high-school-senior-surprised-scholarship-bigfuture-program/.
Your students could be next! All students have to do to get started is to visit www.bigfuture.org and start the steps needed to explore life after high school to be entered to win a scholarship. We award 2 $40,000 scholarships and hundreds of $500 scholarships each month!
Professional Learning Opportunities
CDT Virtual Office Hours
Join our facilitator team during CDT Office Hours to ask your questions about the Classroom Diagnostic Tools (CDT) reports. These sessions contain no formal presentations but are offered to support teachers as they analyze and interpret data in order to make informed instructional decisions and access valuable resources.
September 21 - 8:00 - 9:30 a.m.
October 3 - 11:00 - 12:00 p.m.
October 10 - 2:00 - 3:30 p.m.
October 18 - 8:00 - 9:30 a.m.
October 26 - 11:00 - 12:30 p.m.
November 1 - 2:00 - 3:30 p.m.
November 14 - 8:00 - 9:00 a.m.
December 6 - 11:00 - 12:00 p.m.
Register for any of the above sessions by clicking here.
Leading the Charge: Computer Science (CS) for Instructional Leaders
The Pennsylvania Department of Education is pleased to announce the following webinar series opportunity:
Leading the Charge: Computer Science (CS) for Instructional Leaders
Dates/Times: Attendance at all dates required
October 12, 2023 1:00PM - 2:00PM
November 9, 2023 1:00PM - 3:00PM
December 14, 2023 1:00PM - 3:00PM
January 11, 2024 1:00PM - 3:00PM
February 8, 2024 1:00PM - 3:00PM
March 14, 2024 1:00PM - 3:00PM
April 18, 2024 1:00PM - 3:00PM
May 23, 2024 1:00PM - 3:00PM
Location: Webinars and job embedded hours
Educational leaders face a unique challenge in building CS programs that are comprehensive, inclusive, and strategically-aligned. This program is designed to meet this challenge by providing participants with a foundational understanding of CS and a framework for increasing or expanding CS education.
Presenters: PaTTAN Consultants
Credit: PIL
Cost: There is no cost for this course.
Registration Information:
You may register online by clicking on the name of the event on the Training Events Calendar at: https://www.pattan.net/events
For content related information and questions, please contact Jeremy Gabborin at jgabborin@pattan.net or 717-901-2220.
For general registration information and questions, please contact Sadie Hetrick at shetrick@pattan.net or 717-901-2273.
Educational Technology Spotlight
Beanstack
CLIU 21 is excited to enter into a new Software Consortium partnership with Beanstack. Beanstack helps you create a school-wide reading initiative that aligns with your strategic goals and motivates your students to read and achieve more. We understand that building a culture of reading is a key priority for your schools; school or class-wide reading challenges will help you address that priority. Discounted building-wide pricing is available for the 2023-2024 school year with hopes to improve discounts in future years based on usage.
Click here to learn how Beanstack works and functions.
Included here are a few resources below how Beanstack can support reading initiatives in your schools:
- How a Georgia Middle School Boosted Reading Comprehension by Nearly 10% - Mitchell County Middle School tripled their schoolwide reading level improvement goal for the entire year in half the time.
- Case Study: Improving Test Scores by Reading More - Castleberry ISD grew their state test scores by devoting efforts to motivating students to read more.
- Blog: Building a City that Reads with Atlanta Public Schools
Curriculum Resources
The Center for Civic Education
The Center for Civic Education helps students develop (1) an increased understanding of the institutions of constitutional democracy and the fundamental principles and values upon which they are founded, (2) the skills necessary to participate as competent and responsible citizens, and (3) the willingness to use democratic procedures for making decisions and managing conflict. Ultimately, the Center strives to develop an enlightened citizenry by working to increase understanding of the principles, values, institutions, and history of constitutional democracy among teachers, students, and the general public.
To fulfill this mission, the Center develops high-quality curricular materials, provides exceptional professional development for teachers, and advocates for stronger civic education in the United States and emerging democracies. Learn more and sign up for their newsletter here.
Understanding our ELs - Teacher Toolkit
ESL Facilitators from Berks County Intermediate Unit and Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit (Katie Kehm & Christin Adams) are releasing a monthly teacher toolkit to help ALL teachers in understanding and supporting English Learners. Check out the Back to School Toolkit and share with all staff members!
Math at the Core: Middle School
Find engaging media and integrated activities, all aligned with the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics. Designed using a culturally and historically responsive approach to engage diverse middle school students through grounding in the real world and connection to relevant issues. Produced by a collaborative of public media stations and producers with funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Click here to directly access Math at the Core: Middle School on PBS Learning Media.
CLIU 21 Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies
As we enter the 2023-2024 school year, the CLIU 21 Curriculum & Instruction/Educational Technologies team welcomes two new team members:
Tonya Swavely, Staff Development Facilitator
Melissa Volcskai, Technology Integration Specialist
Please download the attached document below to see our team and their primary initiatives. You are always welcome to reach out to any member of our team for services or support.
Eric Lech, Director (leche@cliu.org)
Michael Heater, Coordinator (heaterm@cliu.org)