Unpacking standards is the first step in becoming more effective as an educator since standards are often embedded with multiple concepts (Goodwin & Hubble, 2013). In order to effectively teach these concepts, teachers as well as students need to understand what is expected and how to meet these expectations.). By unpacking the standard, a teacher can determine to declarative knowledge (e.g. concepts, vocabulary, facts, details) and the procedural knowledge (eg. skills, procedures, abilities) the student must know to accomplish the standard. Using and unpacking standards in every lesson helps teachers create more effective lessons and help students set specific learning goals for the standard.
Here is an example of "unpacking" a standard:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information (Common Core State Standards Initiative, 2012).
Using the example in The 12 Touchstones of Good Teaching as my guide for how to unpack the standards, here are the following skills that the students will need to master in order to be proficient in this standard:
Here is an example of "unpacking" a standard:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information (Common Core State Standards Initiative, 2012).
Using the example in The 12 Touchstones of Good Teaching as my guide for how to unpack the standards, here are the following skills that the students will need to master in order to be proficient in this standard:
- Students need to be able to identify the Speaker, Occasion, Audience, Purpose, Subject and Tone of the document.
- Students need to be able to identify the author’s background to determine bias.
- Student need to be able to evaluate a historical source for point of view and context.
- Students need to be able to create and defend a historical claim/argument using evidence from a primary or secondary source.
- Students need to be able to differentiate between fact and historical interpretation.
This demonstration located in the video below is presented by a Colorado Department of Education Content Specialist. It shows one of the many ways that educators can go about unpacking the standards.