Model Cornerstone Assessments(MCAs):

A Nationwide Initiative

ShulerNAfME@gmail.comLinkedin.com/in/ScShuler

(860) 325-ARTS

Scott C. Shuler, Ph.D

NAfME.org/Standards

Based on a 2/20/15 Keynote for the International Symposium on Assessment in Music Education

National Core Arts Standards include:

1. Philosophical Foundations2. Lifelong Goals (= vision of Arts Literacy)3. 3+ Artistic Processes (CPR +)4. Enduring Understandings (paired with EQs)5. Connections

– Common Core (ELA, Math)– 21st Century Skills/College & Career Ready– Cross-Arts Connections

6. Opportunity-to-Learn Guidelines7. Model Cornerstone Assessments

– with Student Work

Organizational Structure:Framework Matrix

Music Standards Levels(reflecting differences among 4 “strands”)

Elementary Middle School High School

Beyond High

School

PK-2 3-5 6-8 +1 year +4 years +5 years or more

General Music

Novice Intermediate Proficient Accomplished Advanced

Ensembles

Harmonizing Instruments

Composition / Theory

Music Technology

New National Core Arts Standards envision students learning all 3 Artistic Processes in all classes

But the relative emphasis on each Process varies,depending on class type

Cornerstone Assessments

• Curriculum-embedded

• Engage students in applying their knowledge and skills in an authentic and relevant context

• Anchor the curriculum around the most important performances that we want learners to be able to do (on their own)

-- Jay McTighe (and Grant Wiggins)

2015 Music PrePiloting MCAs

Artistic Process Grade 2 Grade 5 Grade 8

Creating ♫ ♫ ♫

Performing ♫ ♫ ♫

Responding ♫

General Music

Artistic Process Novice Intermediate Proficient…

Performing ♫

Ensemble

MCA Characteristics• Focused on one Artistic Process

• Multiple Process Components

• Embedded in Unit

• Parallel across Grades/Levels

• Analytically Scored

MCA-Like Units fromCT Common Music Assessments

Artistic Process Grade 2 Grade 5 Grade 8

Creating Improvisation Composition Composition

PerformingSinging

Prompt

Singing

Prompt

Singing

Prompt

More at: www.CTcurriculum.org

Music MCALeadership Structure

• Fred Burrack (Kansas State University)

• A. Kelly Parkes (Virginia Tech)

• Team of Research Advisors

• Scott C. Shuler (National Standards Co-Chair)

• Glenn Nierman (NAfME President)

• Ching Ching Yap (past South Carolina arts assessment leader)

• Richard Wells (National Standards Co-Chair)

• David Weatherred (Spokane, WA Music Supervisor)

• Tim Brophy (University of Florida Assessment Guru)

Music MCA Development TimelineGrades 2, 5, 8, and EnsembleSTEP TIMING

1ST PUBLIC DRAFTS June 2014 (with standards)

Refinement June 2014 – February 20152ND PUBLIC DRAFTS Mid-February 2015

PrePiloting February – April 2015Revision April – August 2015

3RD PUBLIC DRAFTS September 2015Piloting September – December 2015Revision December 2015 – January 2016

Repiloting (as needed) February – May 2016Final Revisions and

Benchmarking Summer 2016

FINAL MCAS September 2016

How will we MANAGE nationwide piloting and benchmarking?

beta Site: dev.CTcurriculum.org(final name will be ShareAssessment.org circa May 2015)

Site enables Multiple Teachers/Piloters toUpload Student Work to Same Task

Manage Student Work and Scorers

Basic Statistical Analyses+ Export to Excel for Further Analysis

dev.CTcurriculum.org enables any user to:• Create standards-based units with embedded assessment tasks;• Upload and insert links to files in various formats, including video;• Make units public, private, or accessible only to designated users;• Assign others varied levels of permission (access) that allows them to –

– provide threaded feedback and suggestions for improvement;– participate in editing; and– upload student work to the task and enter their scores.

• Select benchmark (anchor) student work to illustrate levels of achievement on units/tasks;

• Assign work – specifically or randomly – to scorers for blind scoring, a crucial step in benchmarking and calibration processes;

• Manage groups of scorers, monitoring which have completed their assigned task and communicating with those who have not;

• Perform basic statistical analyses on scores and scorers, to identify outliers and determine inter-rater reliability; and

• Clone existing units/tasks and scoring scales for future use or editing.

Where can you findNational Core Music Standards

and PrePilot MCAs?

NAfME.org/Standards

Where can you find Conceptual Framework

andBackground Research?

www.NationalArtsStandards.org

Scott C. Shuler, Ph.D.Arts Education Specialist, CT SDE (ret.)Co-Chair, National Core Music StandardsPast-President, NAfME

ShulerNAfME@gmail.comLinkedin.com/in/ScShuler

(860) 325-ARTS

www.NationalArtsStandards.org NAfME.org/standards