This text-based course is a transcript of the webinar, “Goal Writing Aligned with State Standards,” presented by Marva Mount, M.A., CCC-SLP.
>> Marva Mount: I think we all struggle with goal writing as professionals. Even after all these years, I still have to stop and give a lot of time and attention to goals that are right for my students. Hopefully today’s course will take you through a process that will help you do that.
Some of the objectives we want to accomplish are to explain how the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) align with speech and language deficit areas; discuss how to avoid the “one size fits all” approach to utilizing the Common Core State Standards; and write our goals and objectives for a variety of students, using the Common Core, that are tailored to meet specific identified student needs. We all know if you have seen one child with a speech and language problem, you have seen one child with a speech and language problem. They all look different to us and they all have some unique needs.
I plan to spend about 15 minutes going over the Common Core State Standards. We are not doing that ad nauseum, because I know you have had more than enough information on that. However, I do feel it is important to go over this. There are some places that I go where people do not understand what the Common Core State Standards are all about, and therefore that causes a lot of misunderstanding. We are going to take a few moments to go over some of the key issues in the Common Core.
Purpose of CCSS
Common Core State Standards were born in an attempt to streamline educational standards throughout the country. We have a very mobile society. Individuals move about a lot in today's society. The idea was to have a more streamlined standard process throughout the country, so if students moved from one state to another, or even from one district to another, what they were required to learn would be the same. They would not arrive somewhere and be either really far ahead of the game or really far behind the game. Some people feel like this baby in Figure 1. They feel like this Common Core business was a really cool thing.
Figure 1.
Some people feel like this baby seen in Figure 2. When I first started dealing with the Common Core, I felt like this baby. I was kind of sorry that the Common Core was ever born, until I learned to embrace it and understand what it was all about.
Figure 2.
Some days I feel like the little girl in Figure 3 when it comes to the Common Core. It depends on how collaboration is going and how much teachers are willing to work with me. Sometimes this is my face and you probably feel the same way on any given day.
Who is Using CCSS?
Is everyone using the Common Core State Standards? The answer is no. It was a voluntary process for states to adopt the Common Core. Most states have adopted them with the exception of Alaska, Minnesota, Nebraska, Texas, and Virginia. They are the states that are holding out or have developed their own state standards that they feel meet the curriculum and that they have already spent a lot of money on. The primary reason that some states have not adopted the Common Core is because they spent so much time and effort and finance on developing their own Common Core State standards. They did not feel like they could just throw all that away and begin utilizing something else. Plus, a lot of states have their state standards aligned with their state assessments. In order to do new standards, they would also have to create new state assessments, and that would be a costly venture. Five states chose not to do that at this time.
