colorado academic standards

colorado academic standards

An In-depth Analysis of the Colorado Academic Standards

1. Introduction to the Colorado Academic Standards

The purpose of the Colorado Academic Standards is to establish the essential skills and knowledge that are necessary for students to successfully meet four main goals: purpose of these standards. It establishes the common set of practices and expectations that the parents, school board members, educators, and community members believe should be taught to students. These are the skills that every student must possess to further his or her positive educational, career, and personal development pursuits. Every public school student must have the habits, skills (both mental and physical), and knowledge needed to function as a successful student immediately after high school.

All students deserve fairness and respect because they are unique individuals. These standards recognize the diverse educational needs of Colorado’s students and the Common, Essential Learning Skills that all students need in order to pursue their postsecondary goals. These standards are the culmination of an in-depth, thorough research process. The results reflect hundreds of hours of commentary from all areas of Colorado spanning many interests. All Colorado Academic Standards are reviewed by DPS and are approved by the USOE and the Utah State Board of Education, and are also aligned at their purpose with industry requirements, international expectations, and coursework.

2. Historical Background and Development of the Standards

To understand the context and significance of the Colorado Academic Standards (CAS), it is important to understand the events that led to the development of the standards, their rationale, and the implications for teaching and learning. The following is an abbreviated history of national educational reform and its relationship to Colorado’s academic standards. After a period of relative stability during the sixties and seventies, the educational policy environment of the US underwent significant changes. Major legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965), and Title IX, the reauthorization of ESEA (Improving America’s Schools Act, HR 6), and Goals 2000: Educate America Act all played critical roles in these changes.

The ESEA provided the first federal support for education that didn’t come through a land grant or other federally funded programs. It was the precursor of federal education programs such as Title I, Title II, Goals 2000, and No Child Left Behind. Unlike earlier federal education efforts, the focus was on strategy, not just funding, for a very important goal. It recognized where the host reality of students in poverty resided and it addressed one of the persistent problems in our nation’s public education system. While the ESEA’s financial support has been seriously eroded by inflation, a series of cost controls, and an overburdened tax structure dating back to the Reagan era, the basic principles and intent are still present throughout these federal education initiatives.

3. Key Components and Domains of the Colorado Academic Standards

The Colorado Academic Standards consist of several elements discussed extensively in this section. Specifically, the Colorado Academic Standards include seventeen different standards or domains. These domains are provided in the following section along with a more detailed analysis of each. The analysis of this research is therefore based on seventeen different domains that overall contribute to a comprehensive educational experience. It is important to mention that, with rare exceptions, the standards are generally presented in the table in the following section as seen on the department’s website, rather than how the data was retrieved from the website. However, essential information from the listing of the standards found on the website is included to give the reader a sense of the number of standards within each grade level.

Descriptors of Key Components and Domains of the Colorado Academic Standards. The Colorado Academic Standards, adopted in December 2010 by the Colorado State Board of Education, reflect preK-12 learning expectations in twelve school subject areas as well as comprehensive health and physical education standards for early learners, students in kindergarten through sixth grade level, and standards in the arts for early learners, students in kindergarten through eighth grade, and high school students in grades nine through twelve. Standards and expectations are for student learning in foundations of reading and writing, mathematics, science, social studies, comprehensive health and physical education, world languages, visual arts, dance, drama and theatre arts, music, technology, reading, writing, and communicating, and personal financial literacy.

4. Implementation and Impact of the Standards in Education

Curricular and instructional changes to Colorado’s schools began to occur before the official February 10, 2009, approval of the Colorado State Board and General Assembly of the Colorado Academic Standards. Colorado educators began to collaborate on the development of the Colorado Framework in Mathematics and the Colorado Framework in Reading, Writing, and Communicating beginning in 2005. These documents acknowledged early definitions of 21st-century skills and are the predecessors to the Colorado Academic Standards 2009. The standards were discussed in sessions at district, BOCES, and state meetings as they were being developed, and versions were posted on the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) website. Final draft versions were presented to the State Board on August 14, 2008. After that, preparation began throughout the state for curriculum restructuring and principled reform.

Implementation has created rigorous and specific focus in Colorado public schools. While most public schools already used assessments to monitor performance in reading, writing, and math, between 2000-2001 and 2001-2002, scale scores and writing assessment scores increased across all three grades. For students, a prescribed set of standards may incorporate loss, discouragement, and reduced motivation to learn. However, the standards in language arts and mathematics provide direction and definition that were not previously realized, adding focus to the release of the skills, concepts, and knowledge. Language arts and math educators have realized how many areas of study are incorporated in these subjects, but before the emphasis on standards, only traditional language arts and math classes were provided. The concentration on language arts and math standards may also facilitate integrated study of additional subjects, incorporating an area of study with required themes as the basis. The alignment with 21st-century skills, content choices, concept and real-world applications, and performance assessments offer the chance to capture genuine student interest. Language arts assessments ask for a coherent consolidated composition to summarize literature studies, student research projects, or a community problem, and math asks for problem-solving and real-life applications. Reading definitions are also incorporated so students’ reading skills increase among language arts teachers in addition to the regular reading the teacher allowed in middle and high school classes.

5. Challenges and Future Directions for the Colorado Academic Standards

The standards represent the state’s rigorous goals for all students, communicating the expectations for what students need to know and be able to do. The state is currently putting in place a variety of strategies to help all schools achieve these important goals. However, raising the bar for what all students are required to know is a very difficult endeavor. This is especially true in the early years following the standards implementation when educators, students, and parents are just beginning to navigate the increased challenge of higher expectations and educators are starting to build new approaches to teaching to these expectations.

The state wishes to make sure that the standards are of high quality, reflect the input of Colorado schools and communities, and the expertise of content area educators. Although the CDE calls them the Colorado Academic Standards, the state’s process for developing and maintaining the standards and accompanying resources has relied on the ideas and considerable input of many highly esteemed national organizations, as well as Colorado content area specialists. Making sure that all of these experts are working collectively at high levels of expertise and authority, and that their work reflects the needs of all of Colorado’s students—CCD, small rural districts, and large urban districts—is a very significant ongoing administrative and strategic concern.