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What is it?
Curriculum
What is it like?A path or course to run in small steps.
What is the Purpose?To focus and connect the work of classroom teachers in school to the standards, assessments and classroom practices in order to raise student achievement.
What isn’t it?Curriculum is NOT the textbook or program you purchased from a publisher.
Curriculum can no longer be what you’ve been doing for the past 15 years unless it is demonstrated to be in line with the standards and assessments!
Any document or plan that defines: •the work of teachers•the content to be learned by the students •the methods to be used in the process.
Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum
As referenced by Robert Marzano in his book:
What Works In Schools
“the single most important initiative a school or district can engage in to
raise student achievement..”
Exemplary Practices in
High Achievement,High Accountability
Districts and
Schools
Organization-- Multiple Options for Acceleration-- Vertical AND Grade Level Teams-- Large Blocks of Time-- Literacy & Math Blocks
Planning-- Priority, Time Allocated-- Data & Results Driven-- Team-Based & Individual Planning-- Linked to Staff Development
Curriculum-- Strong Standards Alignment-- Identification of Learning Targets -- Pacing Guides With Vocabulary Focus
Instruction-- K-12 Reading Comprehension with complex texts-- K-12 Writing Across ALL content areas-- Instructional Scaffolding-- Differentiated Strategies-- School-wide Focus on Best Practice Instruction
Assessment-- Focus = Assessment for Learning-- Continuous Formative Assessment-- Benchmark Assessments That Direct Instruction-- Continuous Use of Rubrics
What is a Guaranteed Curriculum?• EVERY STUDENT is provided the
opportunity to learn a core curriculum which provides them with the probability of success in school.
What is a Viable Curriculum?• Schools make sure that the necessary
time is available and protected so students will be able to learn the guaranteed curriculum.
The Principles of a Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum
• Provides teachers with a guide for what students need to learn in order to be successful.
• Prevents redundancies in instruction.
• Guards against gaps in student learning.
• Provides a sequence of what needs to be learned across individual grade levels or courses as well as a vertical sequence from grade level to grade level or from course to course.
• Provides teachers with a correlation to the standards and assessments in an attempt to assure students are as well prepared as possible.
The Principles of a Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum
Components to Ensure a Guaranteed and Viable WRITTEN Curriculum
Learning Targets:• Identify the most important learning in
the Standards• Are sometimes called “secure” or
“proficient” skills• Answer the question: What do students
need to know and be able to do in this grade/course?
• Are written in student friendly language
Examples of Learning Targets:
Components to Ensure a Guaranteed and Viable WRITTEN Curriculum
Pacing Guides [Sometimes called curriculum maps]:• Are used as a communication device• Conceptualize a unit• Enable consistent curriculum pacing and
planning • Highlight important vocabulary• Enable students and parents to “see” the
knowledge gained over time
Curriculum Map ExampleTopic: First Grade Writing
Key Learning: Spoken words, illustrations & print convey meaning.
Unit Essential Question: How can I be a good writer?
Instructional Tools: Story Maps Writing Process Writer’s Workshop
Animated Literacy Word Splash Organized Word Walls
Letters & Words Directionality Capitalization/PunctuationConcepts:
LEQ(s): (1) How do I form letters correctly? (2) How do I make words that say what I mean?
Vocabulary:
middle, left, around, right, bottom, top, down
LEQ(s): (1) Where do I start writing?
(2) Where do I go when I reach the end of the line?Vocabulary: return sweep, left, top, right, bottom
LEQ:(1)What does a sentence look like? How would I know one if I saw one?
Vocabulary:
question, period, space, capital letter, sentence, lower/upper case letters, exclamation mark, question mark
Secondary Pacing Guide Example – Aligned to CCSS
Components to Ensure a Guaranteed and Viable WRITTEN Curriculum
Unit Plans:• Pull together the Standards, Essential
Questions and Learning Targets into a coherent, teachable framework
Unit Plan Examples
Components to Ensure a Guaranteed and Viable WRITTEN Curriculum
And, of course…Assessments:
Key Question: What is your District’s Assessment Plan?
What has to be in place for districts to carry out the successful implementation of a guaranteed and viable
curriculum?
ONE: The entire learning community has a clear understanding of the concept of curriculum.
Can everyone in your system say…“I know what my students need to learn, what I need to teach so they learn it, and how to measure if they
learned it”?
Would all teachers say…“The written curriculum is non-negotiable”?
What has to be in place for districts to carry out the successful implementation of a guaranteed and viable
curriculum?
TWO: The curriculum for each grade level and course must be:• Clearly written,
• Thoroughly communicated,
• Measurable,
• Rigorous enough to challenge each student, and
• Relevant
What has to be in place for districts to carry out the successful implementation of a guaranteed and viable
curriculum?
THREE: There must be alignment, including vertical and horizontal alignment.
What do you have in place in the
Wilson School
District?
