Pepperell Primary teacher selected to a national review committee

Media release: Ryan Mathis, a third-grade teacher at Pepperell Primary School, has been selected to participate on a review team to develop the assessments for the new Common Core curriculum being implemented by states across the country.  

 

The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness of College and Careers (PARCC) is assembling representatives from participating states to develop the assessments.  Mathis will participate on the PARCC Bias and Sensitivity Content Review Committee for English/language arts literacy.  The Bias and Sensitivity Content Review Committee is charged with determining whether the subject matter, presentation, and language used in PARCC test items and tasks are free of potential bias and acceptable to participating state students, parents, and other community members.

The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is a consortium of states working together to develop a common set of K-12 assessments in English and math.  The assessments will be focused on what it takes for children to be ready for college and careers after graduation. These new K-12 assessments will seek to build a pathway to college and career readiness for students by the end of high school, mark students' progress toward the goal from 3rd grade up, and provide teachers with timely information to alter student instruction and provide student support. The PARCC assessments will be ready for states to administer during the 2014-15 school year. Mathis feels PARCC will greatly benefit the students of our state and county.  "This assessment will allow students, parents and educators from grades 3-12 to see if they are on track for post secondary success."  He added, "More importantly, it allows teachers to see where students have gaps of information or misunderstandings and how best to address those issues to ensure optimum opportunity for success of all students."   

PARCC selected Mathis because of his leadership at the state level. He was selected by the state to help develop and implement the Common Core Georgia Performance Standards English/language arts units. "While working with the state, I developed a better understanding of where our education as a whole is headed." Mathis said. "My experience with the state and what I have learned while working in the Floyd County School system has provided me with a greater knowledge and understanding of what I must do to achieve success within my classroom for all students." According to the PARCC website, PARCC received many expressions of interest from state representatives and attempted to select a balanced panel of individuals who together possess the broad range of expertise and experience to help guide the development of PARCC's next-generation assessment system.  Mathis is in his fourth year of teaching and has spent all four years at Pepperell Primary School.    

 

The Bias and Sensitivity Content Review Committee will convene for a total of three in-person and two virtual meetings during the remaining years of the PARCC grant, which extends through September 2014.  The initial meeting of the group will be held in November.