Daylight Savings Time begins on Sunday, March 8.  Most people associate the time change with longer periods of daylight.  However, in education this time signifies that another school year is coming to an end.  Teachers will begin grumbling, "I don't have time to teach it all!"  Following Daylight Savings Time are Snow Days, Early Release Days, Spring Break, Awards Assemblies and other disruptions to the written and taught curricula.  These barriers occur each year, but we continue to allow teachers to race to the finish line without modifying the local curriculum.


Items To Consider:

1.  Does our district have a 'guaranteed and viable curriculum'? (Marzano)

2.  If our district has a 'guaranteed and viable curriculum,' how do teachers
     communicate their individual decisions regarding 'what' to teach and
     what to eliminate in the time remaining?

3.  Does our district have a communication tool which allows teachers to
     share their thoughts on the pacing and the written vs. taught curriculum?

4.  Glatthorn (1987)recommends that school districts identify four kinds of
     objectives in the written curriculum:

a.  Mastery:  The teachers have agreed that all students should learn these
                     objectives, skills and concepts.

b.  Organic:   Just as important as the mastery curriculum, if not more.
                      It doesn't require highly structured organization.
                      Examples:  Appreciation of poetry, Develop a curiosity for the
                                        natural world, etc. 

c.  Team Planned:  The expectation is that departmental or grade-level teams
                               will plan this component, so that therre is no duplication
                               from year to year. 

d.  Student Determined:  The unstructured enrichment part that does not
                                          require specific planning, but can be left to the
                                          emerging interests of the students in a particular
                                          class.

Source:  Glatthorn, A.A. (1987). Curriculum Renewal, pp. 5-7.

5.  Identifying Essential Learning Outcomes:
   
    Doug Reeves recommends that educators focus decisions about what
    is ‘essential’  (i.e., state standards, concepts, skills, understandings)
    by using the following criteria:

     Endurance -  Will this standard provide students with knowledge and
                        skills that will be of value beyond a single test date?

    Leverage -   Will this provide knowledge and skills that will be of value
                        in multiple disciplines?

     Readiness for the next level of learning - Will this provide students
                        with the essential knowledge and skills that are necessary
                        for success in the next grade or the next level of
                        instruction?      

Source:  Reeves, D. (2002). The Leader’s Guide to Standards, pp. 49 – 52.

Additional Suggestions:

Curriclum Mapping             District/Teacher Forums              District Blog

Unpacking Standards         Professional Learning Community

Curriculum Audit                District Surveys on the Taught Curriculum/Pacing


Questions:

What strategies have you used to make certain that teachers and administrators teach the most essential curriculum, rather than trying to squeeze it 'all' into the final nine weeks of the school year?

Are teachers making these decisions in isolation or as a professional team?

 


Comments




Leave a Reply