Identifying High Quality Instructional Materials in Social Studies

Research shows that access to high quality instructional materials (HQIM) matters for student success, but do these materials exist in social studies and do students have access to them? Join EdReports for a conversation focusing on understanding the current landscape of HQIM in social studies, sharing research based best practices in the field and get a peek inside the work EdReports and the American Institutes for Research (AIR) are doing to better define what HQIM looks like in social studies.

Panelists

Stefanie Wager

Stefanie Wager is the Social Studies Consultant at the Iowa Department of Education and consults for the American Institutes for Research as a Senior Technical Assistance Consultant in the Education Statistics Division. Her primary responsibilities include working with state departments of education, supporting the revision and implementation of academic standards. This includes creating resources, tools, and professional development to support effective implementation of standards. She has worked with four states and the District of Columbia on social studies standards revision and implementation. Stefanie also contributed to the creation of the Guide to Developing and Implementing Social Studies Standards (CCSSO, 2018). She served as a teacher internationally and in urban and suburban districts. In addition, as the former President of the National Council for the Social Studies, Stefanie has worked with numerous external partners on projects impacting social studies education including iCivics, CCSSO, ASCD, the Center for Civic Education, National Council for Geographic Education, etc. She has extensive experience in creating and delivering professional development and in curriculum design. Wager holds a Bachelor’s in Secondary Education and Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Drake University.

Beth Ratway

Beth Ratway, a principal technical assistant consultant at AIR, has over 25 years of education experience. She works with state education agencies (SEAs), intermediate regional service agencies and school districts focusing on designing and implementing college, career and civic ready standards. Her extensive knowledge and work has allowed her to support state and district standards revision processes by providing professional development rooted in evidence-based strategies. She has worked with multiple SEAs facilitating the development of common language and processes for standards revision and implementation across divisions and departments. She created processes and tools to help facilitate discussions, leading to a comprehensive guide to standards revision and implementation. She has also worked with eleven states to facilitate and guide the standards revision and implementation process. Through this work she co-developed the Standards Review and Revision Toolkit (CSAI, 2018) (https://www.csai-online.org/spotlight/standards-review-and-revision-toolkit) and authored the Guide to Developing and Implementing Social Studies Standards (CCSSO, 2018) (https://ccsso.org/sites/default/files/2018-08/SSACI%20Social%20Studies%20Standards%20Imp%20Guide_0.pdf).

Lauren Gallicchio

Lauren Gallicchio has served as Social Studies Academic Program Consultant with the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) Office of Teaching and Learning since 2016. As a National Board certified teacher, she has been fortunate enough to work in a variety of school settings, both within rural and urban districts for the past 17 years. This diversity of settings and student populations has provided a unique insight into the many ways that social studies can be useful in helping students understand modern society's ever-evolving world. Through her experiences in consulting, teaching and research, her goal is to support Kentucky's teachers, schools and districts in creating opportunities and environments where students can gain the content knowledge, analytical skills and experiences that will enable them to fulfill the duties of citizenship in their local, regional, national and global communities. Lauren currently serves as President-Elect of the Council of State Social Studies Specialists (CS4).

Courtney Allison (Moderator)

Courtney Allison is the Chief Academic Officer at EdReports. She leads the organization's efforts to create educator-led, evidence-rich reviews in K-12 Mathematics, English Language Arts, and Science. In her role, she also helps shape broader organizational strategy and direction, particularly around academic endeavors and new opportunities. She has over 20 years of experience working in education and spent 15 years as part of the New York City Department of Education, where she was a middle school mathematics teacher, school leader, professional developer, and finally served as the Chief of Staff for the Division of Teaching and Learning. Prior to joining EdReports, Courtney was the Deputy Executive Director of Math for America. In all her roles, she strives to ensure the work of teachers informs broader policy and decision making. She lives in New York City, where she is a proud NYC public school parent and an unapologetic cat person.