Oasis Defined

OASIS (Objective Alignment System in Schools) is an internet instructional management system for documenting and monitoring teaching the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) and aligning with the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). OASIS contains a dynamic curriculum database vertically-aligned with TEKS for all subject areas, grades K-12, and the requirements of the TAKS, grades K-10 (exit level). The expert alignment data in OASIS includes:

1) Alignment objectives added to the TEKS to create a developmental sequence of skills so all prerequisite skills and skills tested on TAKS are introduced in the curriculum at least one grade level before the skill is tested at a mastery level on the TAKS.

2) Specific instructional strategies describing how to align classroom instruction and assessment with the higher-level thinking and logical reasoning skills required for student success on the TAKS in reading, writing, and mathematics.

TEKS and TAKS Alignment

The TEKS/TAKS alignment in OASIS is based on extensive research of identifying the specific higher-level thinking and logical reasoning skills imbedded in the TEKS and required for success on the TAKS and designing specific instructional strategies for aligning classroom instruction and assessment with these skills.

Students have higher scores on the TAKS when they are taught the TEKS and the application-level thinking skills tested on the TAKS; therefore, aligned classroom instruction and assessment will improve TAKS scores. The expert alignment objectives in OASIS are designed to "fill the gaps" in the TEKS from one grade level to the next grade level so the curriculum is vertically-aligned to the TEKS and the TAKS.

2002-2003 OASIS Database Contains

Student Expectations aligned with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for all subjects, grades K-12. Expert alignment objectives in reading, writing, and mathematics aligned vertically and developmentally from the concept to application levels with the TEKS and the TAKS in reading, writing, and mathematics.

Expert alignment suggestions of instructional strategies designed to improve the higher-level thinking and logical reasoning skills required for student success in the tested curriculum identified in the TEKS and the TAKS in reading, writing, and mathematics. Interactive features for:

1) Creating internet lesson plans utilizing all the information in the database.

2) Adding information on resources, activities, and assessment aligned with specific objectives and for sharing this information with other teachers.

3) Checkboxes to indicate what objectives in the curriculum have been taught.

Instructional Management System

The OASIS system provides checkboxes beside each student expectation and alignment objective in the system so teachers can indicate which objectives have been taught. A "taught report" can be generated in OASIS indicating with a star the objectives that have been taught as of a certain date.

Lesson Plans

Teachers in schools with access to OASIS can create weekly lesson plans online with all of the information available in the OASIS database. Teachers can search the database for specific objectives in any subject area and automatically send any objective or other information related to the objective directly to a clipboard on the lesson plan page. Teachers can use the data in the OASIS system and can type in other information directly to the lesson plan page.

Lesson plans can be saved for the entire school year and subsequent years and referred to by the teacher by searching the file of lesson plans by date. Lessons plans created by the teacher can be easily printed in a "format to print" component of OASIS and can be transferred and saved offline in Microsoft Word. Principals or Instructional Coordinators can access the OASIS system and review teachers' lesson plans.

Curriculum Development

The OASIS system provides a framework for the ongoing development of curriculum at the district level and/or the school level. There is a special row for adding specific data or objectives to OASIS for district requirements. All school personnel in the district have access to the information in this district row.

There are also three "custom rows" in OASIS designated for use by an individual school. These rows can be labeled with specific headings for curriculum development. For example, a custom row could be labeled "Resources," another row could be labeled "Activities," and the third row could be labeled "Assessment/Evaluation." As teachers teach a specific objective they can add information about this objective to the custom rows.

All teachers have access to all information added to the custom rows by other teachers which supports a workgroup environment for teachers. Using the custom rows teachers can create a dynamic and internet curriculum. This unique internet curriculum is available for use and revision for as long as the school or district desires.

Monitoring

Superintendents can monitor the ongoing implementation of the state and district curriculum and alignment with the TAKS in their respective school districts by individual school and teacher. The OASIS system provides superintendents with access to all teachers' internet lesson plans and the unique curriculum information added by teachers to the system. Principals can monitor lesson plans and curriculum development at the campus level.

Assessment Component

NetProctor, an on-line Internet-based testing system, is integrated into the OASIS system and is available to OASIS members. Teachers in schools with access to OASIS can register with NetProctor and create any number of tests. Tests may be composed of different types of questions (multiple choice in the TAKS format, true/false, yes/no, essay, etc.) and may contain any number of questions. After developing a test, teachers may create student accounts for students to take the test online via the Internet through the OASIS system. A student account is unique across the system with teachers adding their initials to each of their student accounts. A student account may be configured to take one or more of the tests created by a teacher. The test score is presented immediately to the student after the student completes the test. The complete results of the student test is e-mailed to the teacher as the test administrator.

Internet Based

The OASIS system with the alignment expert data is delivered to your school via the Internet on any computer (Mac or PC) with access to the Internet. Teachers and administrators can access OASIS from school, home, or anywhere in the world with a computer with access to the Internet. OASIS is available 24 hours a day from any WEB browser. The OASIS system uses state-of-the-art high performance Internet technology and provides secure, fast access to information.

Security

The OASIS system has built-in security at the district, school, and individual teacher level.

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