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Tom McCarthy, DPI Communications Director, (608) 266-3559MADISON — New draft academic standards, which specify what students should know and be able to do at grade level spans or stages of proficiency, are available for public comment in dance and world languages. Additionally, surveys opened this week for 30 days of public comment on whether the Department of Public Instruction should revise standards for art and design education and personal financial literacy.
Dance and World Languages
Standards in dance and world languages were first developed in 1997. The new draft standards are part of a years-long process to examine academic standards in 29 subject areas, with the work guided by recommendations of the State Superintendent’s Standards Review Council. Educators from each subject area, administrators, parents, business and industry professionals, and service organizations contributed to the review, development, and writing of the draft standards for both dance and world languages.
Co-chairs for the dance writing panel included Susan Gingrasso, retired theatre and dance professor, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point; and Jessica Bauer of Reedsburg, instructor, Signature Steps Studio and physical education educator. The standards cover four grade spans: kindergarten to grade two, three to five, six to eight, and nine to 12. The overall focus is on building students’ skills and knowledge of expressive movement through the artistic processes: create, perform, respond, and connect.
Standards for world languages include performance expectations for communication, cultural competence and understanding, and global competence and community engagement. The types of knowledge and skills the standards expect of students are dependent on their language proficiency and developmental age at the novice, intermediate, and advanced levels. Writing committee co-chairs were Karen Luond Fowdy, retired German language teacher from the Monroe School District, and Lynn Sessler Neitzel, director of Teaching and Learning Resources, Blackhawk Technical College.
Comments on the two sets of standards will be collected over a 30-day period through the department’s academic standards website. Two hearings will be held during the comment period to gather additional public feedback. The first hearing will be in Madison on Feb. 5, from 4 to 6 p.m., at the DPI headquarters, GEF 3, Room P41, 125 South Webster Street, Madison. Those intending to testify at the Madison hearing will be required to present photo identification at the security desk near the Webster Street public entrance. Those who need to use the building’s handicapped accessible entrance on Butler Street should press a doorbell for admittance and check in with security. The second hearing will be held in Oshkosh on Feb. 19, from 4 to 6 p.m., at the Cooperative Education Service Agency 6, Collaborations Conference Room, 2300 State Road 44, Oshkosh.
During the public comment period, the standards will be submitted to the Assembly and Senate Education committees for legislative review and comment. The State Superintendent’s Standards Writing committees will review all comments, both from the public and the Legislature, and incorporate any necessary changes before submitting the standards to the State Superintendent’s Standards Review Council for its review of the process and recommendations. The standards will then be submitted to the state superintendent for approval and publication through the department.
Art and Design Education and Personal Financial Literacy
In the first step of the standards review process, the department published a notice of intent to review for art and design education and personal financial literacy. Standards for art and design education were last updated in 2000. Model academic standards for personal financial literacy were published in 2006.
In Wisconsin, all state standards serve as a model. Authority to adopt academic standards rests with locally elected school boards. More information about the draft standards in dance and world languages can be found on subject area pages on the Department of Public Instruction website.
Background and Survey Links
Public Hearings
February 5 – 4 to 6 p.m.
Department of Public Instruction, Room P41
125 South Webster Street, Madison
February 19 – 4 to 6 p.m.
CESA 6, Collaborations Conference Room
2300 State Road 44, Oshkosh