NO

CO

MPR

OM

ISES

>>> Combining High

Academic Standards and Authentic Environmental Learning

20072008

20092010

20112012

20130

102030405060708090

100

GETTIN

G STARTED

>>>• Who are you?• What questions do you bring to

this presentation?• What is one standard that you

would want (your/all) students to master?

• What are the bright spots? How can we share them?• How do schools partner effectively, and how does this

generate resources?• How does our curriculum change and motivate students?• How do you start/work in a community where

environmental engagement is limited?• How does Common Ground work with other schools to

influence others?• NGSS standards – are schools waiting, critical, adopting?

YOU

R M

OTI

VATI

ON

S >>

>

OU

R ROO

TS >>>Common Ground was

founded in 1997, one of Connecticut’s first

charter schools. Our commitment was to ecology, academics,

character, and community.

OU

R PL

ACE

>>>

The Farm. 20 acres that our students can shape.The Forest. West Rock Park.The City. Real-world challenges and opportunities.

OU

R CURRICU

LUM

>>>From the start, our curriculum focused on the urban environment, and on core principles of ecology.

Sample Courses:Egg & SeedBioinventoryPolitics of Growing FoodFour Corners

OU

R CH

ALLE

NG

E >>

> “In need of improvement”

Stagnant test scores.

Students getting into college, but struggling once they got there.

OU

R CH

ALLE

NG

E >>

>

OU

R RESPON

SE >>>Embraced standards-based

reform: college success & environmental leadership.

Challenge our students to develop and demonstrate

mastery through active, authentic environmental

learning.

OU

R CURRICU

LUM

>>>Unique Environmental Courses …Ecologia (Ecology, Nutrition & Spanish)Power (Energy Science & Policy)Food & The Environment (Science & Soc. Studies)Biodiversity (Science and Math)Drama (English and Art)Environmental Justice (Science and Social Studies)Environmental VenturesSustainable Design

… as Integral Part of a College Prep CurriculumAP Government, Environmental Science, etc.Math from Pre-Algebra to AP CalculusReading Workshop, African Lit, AP Composition, French, Spanish, Art, PE, and more.

THE

RESU

LTS

>>>

6 years of dramatic test score gains, including the largest of any Connecticut high school in 2010. E.g., the % of our students earning proficient scores in reading increased from 37% to 90% over the last 6 years.

Our 4-year graduation rate is nearly 10 points above the state average, and 25 points above the city average.

97% of our students gained admission to college last year.

THE RESU

LTS >>>Our students are launching green businesses | writing $100,000 grants | planting

100 street trees | doing climate research in the DR | planning and implementing

sustainability practices | creating outdoor

interpretive exhibits | working with professional

actors to stage Shakespeare.

THIS

IS

ACAD

EMIC

RIG

OR

>>>

• Multiple sets of standards at once – Common Core, Subject Area, School-Wide Leadership, Technology, Real World.

• Real community and environmental issues, relevant to students.

• Rooted in experiences in community, work with community partners.

• Real products and performances for public audiences.

THIS IS

ACADEM

IC RIGO

R >>>

ACAD

EMIC

STA

NDA

RDS,

AU

THEN

TIC

WO

RK >

>>

BREA

KIN

G IT

DO

WN

: U

ND

ERST

AND

ING

BY

DES

IGN

>>>

Standards: Common Core. Next Generation Science Standards. Home-Grown Environmental Leadership

Standards. National Technology Standards. 21st Century Skills

Embedded Concepts & SkillsEssential Questions

Enduring Understandings & Big IdeasActive, Authentic Learning & Assessments

BREAKING

IT DO

WN

: STAN

DARDS >>>

Standard 4: Effort – Discipline, Strategy, Execution, Grit. Students develop clear strategies for achieving sustainable environmental change, display the personal discipline necessary to lead that initiative, and persevere until its completion.

Common Core Math – Use data from a sample survey to estimate a population mean or proportion; develop a margin of error through the use of simulation models for random sampling.

NGSS – Humans depend on the living world for the resources and other benefits provided by biodiversity. But human activity is also having adverse impacts on biodiversity through overpopulation, overexploitation, habitat destruction, pollution, introduction of invasive species, and climate change. Thus sustaining biodiversity so that ecosystem functioning and productivity are maintained is essential to supporting and enhancing life on Earth.

BREA

KIN

G IT

DO

WN

: ST

ANDA

RDS

>>>

• Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

• Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose and audience.

• ... include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., figures, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.

UN

WRAPPIN

G

SKILLS & CO

NCEPTS>>>

Skills ConceptsPlanningDraftingRevisingEditingRewritingTrying different approaches for …

… AudienceOrganizationStylePurposeFormatting/Multimedia/Graphics

ANSW

ERIN

G

ESSE

NTI

AL Q

UES

TIO

NS

>>> • Who is our community? How can we best

communicate to that audience?

• How can humans in cities sustain and promote biological diversity? What do we need to know to do so?

• When is a piece of writing done? What does it take to get there?

… Especially in culminating projects, some essential questions can be student-generated.

TACKLING

BIG

IDEAS >>>

• Our community is diverse and powerful. We can write in a way that engages the diversity of our community.

• Together, we can create an urban oasis for biological diversity. Doing so requires an understanding of the forces that promote and threaten ecological communities.

• Our writing is done when it engages our community to achieve a purpose – and when we can look back at it proudly when we return for our 10th high school reunion. Our writing gets stronger when we incorporate feedback from our community and experts – over, and over, and over.

WH

AT’S

AU

THEN

TIC

? >>

> 1. What do your students care about most? 2. What are the big issues in your school, and on your campus? 3. What is your community – characteristics, assets and challenges?4. What environmental/sustainability issues relate to your standards? 5. How can you use the community as a classroom, textbook, and teacher?6. What partners in your community can help students master standards?7. What leadership capacities will students need to master standards? 8. What real-world product or performance could push students to

demonstrate mastery? 9. How are you measuring the quality of student work? Does this

assessment reflect real-world standards of quality, as well as academic standards?

10.What is the public audience for student work? Think about families, organizations, community residents, decision-makers.

Standards

Concepts & Skills

Essential Questions

Enduring Understandings

& Big Ideas

Messy, real-world issues

Environmental/sustainability themes

Relevance to students

Community-based experiences

Community partners

Leadership opportunities

Real products & performances

Public audiences

AUTH

ENTI

C AS

SESS

MEN

T>>>

The Standard: Argumentative Writing (Common Core – as measured by SBAC)

The Work: Can standardized tests fuel school- and community-wide dialog?

AUTH

ENTI

C AS

SESS

MEN

T >>

>

CRIT

ICAL

INVE

STM

ENTS

:CO

MM

UN

ITY-

ROO

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LEA

RNIN

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>>>

Human Capacity• Faculty Coaches: Curriculum, Assessment, Instruction,

Electronic Portfolios.• Coordinator, Youth Leadership for Environmental

Leadership & Food Justice• Director of Development & Community EngagementStructural Commitments• One Institution: Community Organization/School • Joint Planning Time: Faculty Meetings, Summer Institute• Grant Funding for Real Investments in Student Work• Partnership orientation, showing up in the community• Policy Supports: Single permission slip

THE

NEX

T ST

EP:

GRO

WIN

G IM

PACT

>>> We want to join with

others to grow our impact.

What makes this work hard? What external support would help?

HO

W IT

WO

RKS

>>> Course Name: Biodiversity Duration: 1 Trimester

Course Description: In this course students will learn about the biodiversity of organisms on the Common Ground site and in the city of New Haven. Students will work on projects that involve surveying and counting organisms, learn statistical methods for evaluating the numbers of individuals on a site, and use and create maps that show the locations of the organisms they are studying. …This class will involve frequent outdoor activities, laboratory exercises, research, worksheets, model making and other science and math based activities to accomplish the course tasks.

ROO

TED IN

STANDARD

S >>>Course Name: Biodiversity Duration: 1 Trimester

Alignment to StandardsMathStandard 4.2 Analyze sets of data to form hypotheses and make predictions

a. Describe and analyze sets of data using statistical methodsb. Analyze real world problems using statistical techniques

Standard 4.1 Collect, organize and display data using appropriate statistical and graphical methodsa. Create the appropriate visual or graphical representation of real data

ScienceStandard 10.3 Biodiversity is the sum total of different kinds of organisms and is affected by alterations of habitats.

-Changes in an ecosystem can result from changes in climate, human

activity, introduction of nonnative species, or changes in population size.Standard 10.5 – Evolution and biodiversity are the result of genetic changes that

occur over time in constantly changing environmentsD INQ 8. Use mathematical operations to analyze and interpret data, and present relationships between variables in appropriate forms.D INQ 10. Communicate about science in different formats, using relevant science vocabulary, supporting evidence and clear logic.

TACK

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IG ID

EAS

>>>

Course Name: Biodiversity Duration: 1 Trimester

Enduring Understanding: Who's here, why are they here, and how are they inter-related? Big Ideas for the Course•Biodiversity is the sum total of different kinds of organisms and is affected by alteration of habitats•The process of statistical investigation helps us to explore the world•We can use graphs to determine overall patterns and special conditions •There are ways to choose samples to ensure that they represent the entire population without bias.•Ecosystems have a natural balance and may change due to outside influences

EXPLORIN

G

ESSENTIAL Q

UESTIO

NS >>>

Course Name: Biodiversity Duration: 1 Trimester

Essential Questions •How can I use statistics to explore the world?•How do the graphs I create help me to understand the data I am presenting?•What methods can I use to determine what species are present in an area?•What is biodiversity and how is it represented on our Farm, in our City, and in the Forests near our school?•How is the soil different on the forest, the farm and the Green?•How can humans, climate, the introduction of non-native species and changes in population affect the biodiversity of an area?

Embe

ddin

g Fo

unda

tiona

l Sk

ills>

>>Course Name: Biodiversity Duration: 1 Trimester

Mapping in: Non-fiction reading

-Anchor texts & vocabulary-New priorities in the context of Common Core?

Non-fiction writing-Argumentative and informative writing-Common Rubric used across disciplines

Technology: Research and Information Fluency--using digital tools to gather, evaluate and use information

Leadership: “Wonder”: Curiosity, Creativity and Vision

ACTI

VE, A

UTH

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>>> • Monitor biodiversity on

Common Ground’s site, in the forests of West Rock Ridge, and in the City of New Haven.

• Partner with Yale scientists to do independent research on bird and plant diversity.

• Create a permanent outdoor interpretive exhibit to educate thousands of visitors to our site.

ROO

TED IN

STANDARD

S >>>MathStandard 4.1 Collect, organize and display data using appropriate statistical and graphical methods

a. Create the appropriate visual or graphical representation of real dataScienceEcology - Biodiversity is the sum total of different kinds of organisms and is affected by alterations of habitats.D INQ 10. Communicate about science in different formats, using relevant science vocabulary, supporting evidence and clear logic.

THE

PRO

CESS

>>>

Observing Diversity

Intro

Habitat

Migration

FoodWater

Edge Effect

Explaining Diversity Promoting Diversity

Intro

Habitat

Create Habita

t

Pollution

Intro

Coloration

Songs

Nests & Eggs

Sexual Dimorphism

• Looking for birds is fun. • It is easy to learn to identify birds

because of their different sizes, shapes, colors and sounds.

• Learning to identify birds helps you open your eyes to the world, and see the diversity of life around you.

• What is biodiversity and how is it represented on our Farm, in our City, and in the Forests near our school?

• How can humans, climate, the introduction of non-native species and changes in population affect the biodiversity of an area?

MAKIN

G IT W

ORK

ACROSS TH

E BOARD

>>>

Course Authentic Project

Ecologia (Aligned with Spanish and Biology standards)

Students work in small student-led teams, growing and cooking from our urban farm – entirely in Spanish.

(Photo)

Environmental Justice (Aligned with Social Science and Science standards)

Students do community organizing and develop marketing materials to promote a new healthy corner store initiative.

Environmental Ventures (Aligned with Social Studies/Economic Standards)

Students develop small business ventures using produce from our urban farm, and keep a share of the proceeds.