Less is More: Essential Standards for Deeper Learning

In this S5E10 ‪@schoolutionspodcast‬ conversation, join me with Larry Ainsworth, the pioneer of essential standards work, where he reveals why focusing deeply on fewer standards leads to BETTER assessment results than frantically trying to cover everything. Yes, you read that right: 88% focused teaching outperforms 100% surface-level teaching.

Are you racing through the curriculum without ensuring true learning? This conversation challenges curriculum coverage, offering practical education tips. Learn how focusing on fewer standards can boost student engagement and mastery using a clear teaching strategy. Discover the power of PLC at work and curriculum mapping for impactful education.

What You'll Learn:
✅ The REAL criteria for identifying essential standards (Readiness, Endurance, Assessment, Leverage)
✅ How to support students with disabilities and multilingual learners with essential standards
✅ Why teachers MUST be involved in selecting essential standards (ownership matters!)
✅ How to scaffold instruction for students reading below grade level while maintaining grade-level expectations
✅ The connection between essential standards and project-based learning, classroom engagement, and student motivation
✅ Why Arizona is now weighting its state assessments toward essential standards
✅ How essential standards save time and guide effective teaching, lesson planning, and instructional strategies

Perfect for: teachers, education coaches, school administrators, instructional leaders, school counselors, parents, homeschoolers, teacher mentors, and anyone passionate about student success, effective teaching, and education transformation.

Larry has guided educators for over two decades, written 20+ books, and helped countless schools create culturally responsive teaching environments with equity in education at the center. This isn't about watering down expectations—it's about building the scaffolds students actually need to reach rigorous goals through innovative teaching and inclusive classrooms.

💫Check out the linked episode mentions and other resources here:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1890886/ep...

CHAPTERS
0:00 - Introduction: The Standards Struggle
0:41 - The 88% Solution: Focus Over Coverage
3:00 - Meet Larry Ainsworth: Pioneer of Essential Standards
5:00 - Defining Essential Standards: Power, Priority, or Essential?
9:00 - The 88% Question: Will Students Fail the Test?
14:00 - Supporting Students with Disabilites with Essential Standards
17:00 - Scaffolding Strategy: Meeting Students Where They Are
19:00 - The REAL Criteria: Readiness, Endurance, Assessment, Leverage
23:00 - Assessment and the State Testing Reality
25:00 - Project-Based Learning and Essential Standards
27:00 - This IS the Unit: Depth Over Breadth
28:00 - Focus Dispels the Illusion of Coverage
30:00 - The Administrator's Role: Coach, Cheerleader, Quarterback
33:00 - Lightning Round: Essential Standards vs. Backward Design
35:00 - State-Level Essential Standards: Good or Undermining?
37:00 - The Spectacular Failure: When Teachers Aren't Involved
39:00 - Final Takeaway: Essential Standards as the Foundation
41:00 - Closing: Resources and Next Steps

Join our community of educators committed to cultivating student success, inspired teaching, and creating inclusive classrooms with a pro-kid mindset focused on the whole child. When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.

📧 Connect: [email protected]
🎵 Music: Benjamin Wahl

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