Curriculum Alignment

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Curriculum Alignment
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Larry Lezotte on Curriculum Alignment

• The Five Ts
• Theories
• Teams
• Time
• Technology
• Tools

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Theories

• Continuous School Improvement

• Excellence is always a goal
• not a destination.

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School Improvement Goals

• School Improvement Goal 1
• Disaggregate student groups will achieve Adequate
  Yearly Progress (AYP).

• School Improvement Goal 2
• All students will achieve mastery of the state
  standards in all curricular areas.

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Curriculum Alignment Jargon

• If you dont know what a duck looks like, walks
  like, or sounds like, you still wont be able to
  recognize it.
• Larry Lezotte Founder of Effective Schools

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Horizontal Alignment

• Within the classroom
• Do all my lesson plans reflect state standards?

• Within the department
• Are all the standards being met? Are there areas
  that overlap?

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Vertical Alignment

• Within the building
• How well have my students mastered last years
  standards? Are they ready for next year?
• Within the corporation
• Are there learning gaps that need to be filled?

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Curriculum Alignment Process

• Two Phases
• Align the curriculum with state standards
• Prepare for End-of-Course Assessments

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End-of-Course Assessments

• Benchmark Assessments
• Good formative assessments, good benchmark
  assessments, provide feedback throughout the
  year.
• Douglas B. Reeves Founder of Center for
  Performance Assessment

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ISTEP is Dead?

• Most states provide nothing more than autopsy
  reports right now

• They tell you why the patient died at the end of
  the year, and then marvel that the patient didnt
  get any better.
• Douglas B. Reeves Founder of Center for
  Performance Assessment

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Teams

• Department Heads will lead teams

None of us is as smart as all of us.
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Time

• Documentation by end of school 2008-2009 school
  year

• Release time will be granted if needed to work on
  aligning your curriculum

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Technology

• Can help streamline the process of aligning
  curriculum

it can also be an unwieldy beast!
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Tools

• Lots of tools/resources are available to help you
  get started

• Books
• Software
• Web-sites
• Colleagues

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Colleagues
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English Department
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• Castle Jr. High
• Curriculum Mapping
• Dr. Heidi Hayes Jacobs

Steps to implementing mapping procedures and
leading the mapping process Tools and resources
that assist in creating maps Ways to support the
teacher collaboration and staff development that
are essential to successful curriculum mapping
Ideas for ensuring your school or district buys
into curriculum mapping
In Mapping the Big Picture, Heidi Hayes Jacobs
describes a seven-step process for creating and
working with curriculum maps, from data
collection to ongoing curriculum review. She
discusses the importance of asking "essential
questions" and of designing assessments that
reflect what teachers know about the students in
their care. She also offers a viable alternative
to the "curriculum committees" that are part of
almost every U.S. school district. The book
concludes with more than 20 sample curriculum
maps from real schools, all of which were
developed using the process described in this
book.
Heidi Hayes Jacobs Website http//www.curriculum
designers.com/index.php?PathPublic/0120Home
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Consensus MapAn agreement between grade level
teachers to teach the same concepts during a set
amount of time. It does not mean they agree to
use the same methods of teaching.
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Diary MapAn account of what was actually taught
within the agreed upon time. This map includes
state standards, the activities that occurred
within the classroom, and how the students were
assessed.
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Benefits of Curriculum Mapping

• State Standards
• You insure that you cover all the state standards
• At the end of the first semester you know exactly
  what standards need to be covered during second
  semester
• Horizontal Alignment- grade level
• Ensures that all freshman English students are
  getting a similar education.
• The freshman English teachers agreed what
  standards we would cover each semester.
• Vertical Alignment- freshman English to sophomore
  English
• This allows the sophomore teachers to know what
  content the freshman students were taught and
  when.

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• State standards are listed in the question bank
  of many test generator programs.

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Indiana Standards in Teachers Edition of Textbook
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SmartDesktop

• Sponsored by the INDOE
• Free access to teachers and students
• On-line planning and schedule
• Easy access to standards for linking to your
  curriculum

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Log-in Page
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Instruction tab
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Weekly Schedule
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Adding a Plan
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What students can see on your webpage
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Assignments can be added.
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Standards can be added.
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Student Website

• Daily schedule
• Assignments
• Due dates

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In Class Today
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Assignments
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Upcoming due dates
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To set up an account

• https//www.smartdesktop.org/uPortal/
• smartDESKTOPLogin

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So, whats next?
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Curriculum Alignment Process
Department should decide on one method of
organizing
Take time to align lessons with state standards
End of 2008-09
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Any Questions?