Standards (TEKS)

1
Austin ISD Social Studies Professional
Development "Raising Achievement by Engaging
All Learners"
ORGANIZING FOR EFFORT
Standards (TEKS)
Posted at all times in classroom for each
new day of instruction
Honing it down to the essentials
what is it students need to know.

• Objectives
• Essential Questions
• Guiding Questions
• Overarching Idea /
• Big Question

In discussing these with students, make
connections by returning frequently to the
overarching question
Formatively assess frequently with these
Lesson opener the hook Provocative,
relevant.
Culminating Activity / Assessment
FAIR CREDIBLE EVALUATIONS As mentioned,
teaching and assessment should be aligned to the
standards and focused on mastery of a
disciplines core concepts. If we expect students
to put forth sustained effort over time, we need
to be upfront with them about the essentials they
are expected to know and design assessments that
meet these expectations. Fair evaluations are
those for which students can prepare therefore,
classroom assessments as well as the curriculum,
must be aligned to the standards. The standards
currently being taught are always made public
(visibly posted in the classroom) for students
and visitors to reference.
CLEAR EXPECTATIONS High expectations are
communicated clearly in ways that become embedded
in the thinking of educators, parents, the
community and, above all, students. Lesson
objectives, descriptive criteria and models of
work that generate high interest (because they
are both relevant and meet the standards that are
to be assessed) are publicly displayed. Students
refer to these to analyze and discuss their work.
ACADEMIC RIGOR Knowledge and thinking are
intimately joined. This implies a curriculum
organized around major concepts and / or habits
of thinking specifically related to the
discipline that students are expected to own.
Students are expected to raise questions, solve
problems, and to reason. Students practice
Accountable Talk, wherein explanations and
justifications are expected. Understanding of the
disciplines major concepts is consistently being
assessed as students apply and discuss these with
one another, socializing intelligence.
Red indicates one of the Institute for
Learnings 9 Principles of Learning