K-12 Curriculum Development

In The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork, Maxwell (2001) wrote, "Every team needs a vision to give it direction.  A team without vision is, at worst, purposeless.  At best, it is subject to the personal (and sometimes selfish) agendas of its various teammates.  As the agendas work against each other, the team's energy and drive drain away" (p. 91).  He describes this as the Law of the Compass.



Questions for School Districts:

1)  How do we determine the essential learning outcomes for each student?

2)  How do we monitor student progress towards essential student learning
     outcomes?

3)  Does our school system have an aligned curriculum or does each teacher
     determine the essential learning outcomes in isolation?

4)  Does the written curriculum drive the work of teachers and teacher teams?

"Curriculum design and delivery face one fundamental problem in schools.  When the door is shut and nobody else is around, the classroom teacher can select and teach just about any curriculum he or she decides is appropriate" (English, 2000, p. 1). 

Wiggins (1995) wrote, "Curriculum guides must become more like a compass and a sextant - performance tasks and standards and troubleshooting guides.  We need more than a well-planned set of work requirements and supporting lesson ideas; we need clarity about how courses can help students attain objectives in the face of various adventures and detours.  That adjustment depends on knowing in advance the specific performance destination: the tasks students should be able to perform, and to what standard, as a result of our teaching" (p. 110).

References:

English, F.W. (2000). Deciding what to teach and test: Developing, aligning, and
        auditing the curriculum. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. 

Maxwell, J. (2001). The 17 indisputable laws of teamwork.  Nashville, TN: Thomas
        Nelson, Inc.

Wiggins, G. (1995). Curricular coherence and assessment: Making sure that
        the effect matches the intent. Beane, J.A. (Ed.). Toward a coherent
        curriculum: The 1995 ASCD yearbook. Alexandria, VA: Association for
        Supervision and Curriculum Development. 

Curriculum clutter impacts student achievement.  "When school staff have a more informed conception of curriculum, a teacher's daily decisions about how to deliver instruction not only affect student achievement in that classroom but also future student achievement, for it is assumed that students will be entering the next classroom prepared to handle a more sophisticated or more expansive level of work" (Zmuda, Kuklis & Kline, 2004, p. 122).

As schools enter the month of May, educators ask the following questions:

a)  How can we teach it all?

b)  Should we teach each standard well or should we prioritize the state
     standards?

c)  What skills and understandings should all students have by the end of this
     grade level/course?  How do we adjust our pacing to make these goals a
     reality in the upcoming school year?

One common complaint among teachers and administrators is the lack of time to reflect on the written, taught and received curriculum.  In August, teachers are beginning the school year and some complain that it is too early in the year to discuss the curriculum.  In March and April, teachers have spring break and other holidays which interfere with curriculum meetings.  In May, teachers are amazed that another school year is coming to a close.  In order to prevent curriculum clutter, schools should ask the following questions:

1.  What are the key concepts and skills in each unit of study?

2.  Did our pacing allow us to teach the key concepts and skills this year?

3.  Are we attempting to teach too many concepts and skills in some units?

4.  Are we teaching all key concepts and skills for mastery or should we aim for
     introducing some concpepts/skills and mastery of others?

5.  When will we schedule time to discuss the curriculum in 2009-2010?

In other words, how can we meet on a regular basis to avoid arriving in the
final weeks of the 2009-2010 school year feeling overwhelmed by curriculum clutter?  Wiggins and McTighe (2007) wrote, “Schooling at its best reflects a purposeful arrangement of parts and details, organized with deliberate intention, for achieving the kinds of learning we seek” (p. 9).

Stephen Covey suggests that there are four things that make a great leader. 

1)  Inspire Trust

2)  Clarify Purpose

3)  Align Systems

4)  The fourth is the fruit of the other three - unleashed potential

As you work with curriculum alignment, develop curriculum units and serve as a teacher leader, principal, curriculum coach or curriculum coodinator, you will notice each of these steps.  For example, if you attempt to align systems before establishing trust, you will eventually discover "an absence of trust" (See Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team).  Covey's blog is a great reminder of the importance of instructional leadership and the ongoing need for alignment in our school systems.

For the full blog by Stephen Covey, visit Stephen R. Covey - The Community.

Thoughts for Teachers and Teacher Teams:

When you close the classroom door, how do you make decisions about 'what' to teach?  Do you use the same criteria for making decisions as your co-workers?  How do you decide what to assess?  Do your co-workers assess the same skills and concepts?  How do you make critical decisions about the state standards and pacing?  How do you communicate your decisions within your school?  How do you communicate your decisions within your school district (across schools)?  Is the taught curriculum aligned across schools in your district?  How do you know?

"If schools want to enhance their organizational capacity to boost student learning, they should work on building a professional community that is characterized by shared purpose, collaborative activity, and collective responsibility among staff" (Newmann & Wehlage, 1995, p. 37).

Reference:

Newmann, F., & Wehlage, G. (1995). Successful school restructuring: A report to the public and educators by the Center for Restructuring Schools. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.
 

During the curriculum development process, educators will experience change and various strategies will require that educators have a clear understanding of the differences between first order change and second order change
(See Figure 6 - Waters, Marzano, & McNulty, 2003).

"Assuming that all changes will have the same implications for all stakeholders, and/or using practices that might be appropriate for a first order change when a second order change is actually implied for stakeholders, will likely result in a negative impct on student achievement.  Thus, in addition to focusing leadership efforts on school and classroom practices associated with improved student achievement, leaders must also tailor their own leadership practices based on the magnitude or 'order' of change they are leading" (Waters, Marzano, & McNulty, 2003, p. 7).

Questions for Educators:

1)  How does the chart (Figure 6) change your views on curriculum development
     efforts?

2)  Does curriculum mapping involve first order change, second order change, or
     both?

3)  How do educators determine if a program or initiative will involve first order
     change or second order change?

4)  Reflect on a time during your career in education when an initiative failed or
     was not as successful as it could have been.  Did teachers and administrators
     focus on the product, rather than the process?  Would a careful analysis of
     first order change versus second order change provided the leaders with
     insight on how to support teachers, administrators and the change effort?

5)  How can educators use this research to impact student achievement?

Reference:

Waters, J.T., Marzano, R.J. & McNulty, B.A. (2003). What 30 years of research tells us about the effect of leadership on student achievement. Aurora, CO: Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning. 

Benefits

1)  Improved Alignment

2)  Improved Communication

3)  Increased Relevance

4)  A Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum

5)  Equitable for all Students

What Does Research Tell Us About Purpose-Driven Curriculum?

Working on the Work (W.O.W.) entails teachers' purposefully creating, designing, identifying, or otherwise making available to students authentically engaging activities, programs, tasks, assignments, and opportunities to practice that result in students learning those things it is determined that students need to learn to be judged well educated.

                                                       -  Phillip Schlechty, Working on the Work (2002)

Many educational programs do not have clearly defined purposes.

                           - Ralph Tyler, Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction (1949)

Leadership involves purposes and direction.  Leaders know the ends toward which they are striving.  They pursue goals with clarity and tenacity, and are accountable for their accomplishments.

As cited by Robert Marzano in School Leadership that Works: From Research to Results. Leithwood, K.A. & Riehl, C. (2003). What do we really know about successful school leadership? Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago. 

The attached document outlines Purpose-Driven Curriculum and Instruction (Weber, 2008).

what_is_a_purpose-driven_curriculum.pdf
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The National Staff Development Council (NSDC) recently posted three videos to their site.  The videos were produced by The School Improvement Network and they are beneficial to K-12 educators.  If you are beginning to create curriculum units using Understanding by Design, aligning the curriculum with Curriculum Mapping, training teachers to develop Common Formative Assessments, or changing from teachers working in isolation to teachers and administrators functioning as a Professional Learning Community, then these videos will be a valuable resource.

Professional development is changing and NSDC is leading the way through seeking a revised definition of professional development and through their journal, national conferences, and outreach tools.

View NSDC's Definition of Professional Development Videos

What are your thoughts on the new definition of Professional Development? 
Will these videos assist your school system? 

Recently, I read a book written by Malcolm Gladwell titled, Outliers. Gladwell (2008) wrote, "Marita doesn't need a brand new school with acres of playing fields and gleaming facilities. She doesn't need a laptop, a smaller class, a teacher with a PhD, or a bigger apartment......All those things would be nice, of course. But they miss the point. Marita just needed a chance" (p. 268-269).

Gladwell suggests that superstar athletes are given access to good coaches, private lessons, and additional opportunities.  This quote made me struggle with answers to the following questions.

Questions for Educators:

1.  What does it look like when all students have a chance or an "opportunity to
     learn?"

2.  What role does K-12 curriculum development play in providing each student
     with an "opportunity to learn?"

3.  What policies and procedures need to be developed in order to guarantee
     that each student receives the "opportunity to learn" a guaranteed
     curriculum?

4.  Is it ethical for sixth graders at School A to receive a different curriculum
     (key concepts, skills, understandings) than the sixth graders at School B?

5.  If the opportunity to learn is critical to student success, why don't educators
     discuss "opportunity to learn" on a regular basis?

Please share your thoughts.