The ISLS Group
The implementation of Common Core State Standards and Smarter Balanced tests have implications for Washington’s postsecondary schools and prospective students. To guide implementation efforts, the Student Achievement Council formed the Improving Student Learning at Scale (ISLS) Collaborative. Washington is one of six states—along with Arizona, California, New Hampshire, West Virginia, and Wyoming—that were selected by the National Governors Association to establish a collaborative.
The ISLS Collaborative meets regularly to work on the following key objectives:
- Create a common vision between organizations for the work to be carried out.
- Develop a comprehensive communications plan.
- Facilitate planning and coordination across the state.
- Identify and connect CCSS implementation efforts across the state.
The ISLS Collaborative includes representatives from the following partners:
- Washington Student Achievement Council
- State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
- Council of Presidents
- State Board for Education
- Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction
- Washington State Legislature
- Governor’s Office
- Partnership for Learning
- Independent Colleges of Washington
- Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board
The ISLS Collaborative also works closely with the Washington Core to College Project, which has developed recommendations for the use of the 11th grade Smarter Balanced Assessment to exempt students from remedial college coursework, if their assessment scores are 3 or 4. The Core to College Project also includes cross-sector teams of high school teachers and college faculty who are developing 12th grade transition courses in mathematics and English language arts, designed to bring lower scoring students up to college and career-ready levels.
The ISLS Collaborative will meet through fall 2015.
Read the full ISLS grant here.