ERIC ED608992: High-Quality Curriculum Implementation: Connecting What to Teach with How to Teach It

2020·1.7 MB·English

by  ERIC

High-Quality Curriculum
Connecting What to Teach with How to Teach It
Implementation
Summer 2020
The Potential of a High-Quality Curriculum
INTRODUCTION end. A number of national organizations –
including Chiefs for Change, The Education
Trust, and The Aspen Institute –have called
The Potential of a High-Quality Curriculum for the adoption of high-quality curriculum to
Research confirms what effective educators ensure that all students have the opportunity
and policymakers know from practice: that to learn in an academically rigorous
the implementation of a “high-quality” classroom.
curriculum –one that is aligned to rigorous
state standards –leads to notable learning This is a much-needed reform. It is especially
gains for students.1,2Yet, only 40% of critical for low-income students and students
teachers report that they are using curricula of color who too often attend schools with
that are “high-quality and well aligned to low-quality curriculum and learning
learning standards.”3In a study of math materials. Without high-quality instructional
curriculum usage that included 6,000 schools materials, students are not challenged to
and over 1,200 teachers across six states, work at a level that meets expectations for
researchers reported that just 25% of their grade level and often spend time on
teachers used the textbook in nearly all their irrelevant or disconnected activities and
lessons for all essential activities, including assignments.5As a result, low-income
in-class exercises, practice problems, and students and students of color are less likely
homework problems. They also found that to be given opportunities to think and
teachers received 0.8 to 1.4 days, on problem-solve in more complex ways or
average, of professional development reach the depth of knowledge necessary to
tailored to the curriculum they were using. meet state standards for college and career
Even a curriculum highlighted as being readiness.
among those with the most support
provided a total of only 1.6 days.4 In districts that lack a high-quality
curriculum, teachers are forced to try to fill
In light of these findings, many districts and the gaps –spending hours looking for, or
states have made the adoption of high- developing their own, resources or activities
quality curriculum a priority and have to better align to rigorous state standards.
marshaled considerable resources to this
1 Chingos, Matthew, and Grover Whitehurst. 2012. “Choosing Blindly: Instructional Materials, Teacher
Effectiveness, and the Common Core.” Washington, D.C: Brookings Institution.
2 Jackson, C. Kiraboand Alexey Makarin. 2016. “Simplifying Teaching: A Field Experiment with Online Off-the-Shelf
Lessons.” National Bureau of Economic Statistics, Working Paper No. 22398.
3 Educators for Excellence. Voices from the Classroom, 2020. e4e.org/teachersurvey.
4 Kane, Tom and David Blazer. March 2019. “Learning by the Book.” Center for Education Policy Research, Harvard
University.
5TNTP. 2017. “The Opportunity Myth: What students can show us about how school is letting them down –and
how they can fix it.” Brooklyn, NY: TNTP.
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The Potential of a High-Quality Curriculum
This investment of time can be substantial. materials are designed to engage students in
For example, 70% of teachers in Tennessee a deeper level of learning, create a focused
report spending more than four hours per direction, and help teachers make
week creating or sourcing instructional connections across grade levels. This saves
materials.6 teachers from having to fit things together
on their own or fill in gaps that may exist
The challenge of supplementing a low- between the curriculum and the adopted
quality curriculum is daunting even for state standards.
experienced, highly skilled teachers. It can be
overwhelming for inexperienced or less Faydra Alexander, director of leadership
skilled teachers. Recent research on the development in the Algiers Charter in New
quality of supplemental curricular materials Orleans, puts it this way: “Using high-quality
available on three popular websites found curricula is key to helping our students think
fewer than 10% were “exceptional or highly in a more complex way and access the type
likely to contribute to a quality curriculum.”7 of reading, writing, computing, and problem-
solving they will face in college and beyond.
Amy Drury –a second grade teacher at We need to prepare our students for that.”
Barrera Veterans Elementary School in
Somerset Independent School District (ISD), A high-quality curriculum provides more
located just south of San Antonio, Texas, coherence and connection in the sequencing
described a disjointed approach before the of learning between grade levels. Robert
adoption of a new curriculum. “Before, we Pondiscioof the Fordham Institute
would have to fit various things together on highlighted the potential impact. “An
our own,” she said. “Too often there was a excellent education is not just what gets
disconnect between what we were teaching taught today,” he said. “It’s the cumulative
and what the standards were. We often effect of a coherent, thoughtfully sequenced,
ended up using piecemeal resources.” and knowledge-rich curriculum that
broadens and deepens over time, within and
Introducing a new high-quality curriculum across grade levels.”8
offers the potential to address these
challenges. High-quality instructional
6Tennessee Department of Education. 2019. “Tennessee Educator Survey.” Retrieved from:
https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/education/data/2019-survey/Lessons_District_Leaders_Infographic.pdf
7Polikoff, Morgan and Amber Northern. December 2019. “The Supplemental Curriculum Bazaar.” Education Next.
8Pondiscio, Robert. January 2020. “Digging in the dirt for quality curriculum.” Washington, D.C. Fordham Institute.
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Implementation Challenges
Michael Anderson School, Avondale, Arizona
Implementation Challenges Curriculum developers cannot anticipate or
Identifying and selecting a high-quality address all of the challenges that will arise
curriculum is the first step, but implementing once teachers begin using the resources with
it well is just as important. “I've never said their students.
it's just about curriculum,” Baltimore City
Public Schools CEO Dr. Sonja Santelisessaid. Less experienced teachers and new teachers,
“What I've said is if you don't have a strong in particular, might not understand the
curriculum, you're not even starting in the content at the depth necessary to effectively
right place.” She describes the adoption of a teach it. Teachers often do not know how to
knowledge-rich curriculum as “the first half locate and use curricular resources or whom
of chapter one.“9 to ask for help. For example, being able to
identify where the curriculum might not be
While districts and curriculum providers offer fully aligned to expectations in a state
a range of upfront training and some standard, or how to support students who
additional professional development are above or below grade level, requires
sessions during the year for teachers, even significant content and instructional
the best training on a new curriculum knowledge.
provides limited opportunities for teachers
to plan and refine how to use the materials.
9 Pondiscio, Robert. November 2019. “Curriculum advocates: Prepare for a long, hard struggle.” Washington, D.C.
Fordham Institute.
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Implementation Challenges
Teachers with students below grade level High-quality curriculum sets the course for
face an even bigger set of concerns with deeper learning and requires commensurate
high-quality instructional materials. In these improvements in instructional skills to deliver
classrooms, teachers must work even harder rich, engaging lessons. To truly achieve
to create strategies or build scaffolds for equitable outcomes for students, adopting a
their students to successfully use the new high-quality curriculum cannot be a stand-
materials. Districts and schools with alone goal. The curriculum must be
significant numbers of students below grade implemented in conjunction with ongoing,
level need to prioritize the inclusion of job-embedded learning for teachers to
supports for these students in selecting a understand how to adapt their teaching to
new curriculum and create professional the demands of the new curriculum. If we
learning that helps them to use these expect teachers to utilize the curriculum
supports in their classroom. These schools every day, we have to create a professional
require significant ongoing investment from learning environment where teachers and
the district to ensure that teachers have the school leaders are always talking about,
help they need. planning, and designing instruction with the
curriculum.
In addition, many principals are not
adequately prepared to provide coaching on The introduction of a strong curriculum
the curriculum, and district systems for provides a key opportunity to restructure
ongoing professional learning are often professional learning to better support the
disconnected from curriculum training. These use of high-quality materials alongside
challenges in implementation contribute to a effective teaching practices. This
lack of impact on classroom teaching and restructuring requires teamwork among
student outcomes. As Executive Director of multiple stakeholders at every level of the
the Johns Hopkins Institute for Education system, including district curriculum leaders,
Policy Dr. David Steiner points out, high- principals, coaches, teacher leaders, and
quality curriculum without teacher supports teachers. Success in this work also involves
is not going to have a positive impact. communicating to parents the new
“Availability isn’t usage, and usage ‘in some expectations embedded in the curriculum
fashion’ isn’t going to move the needle on and supporting them to reinforce their child’s
student outcomes,” he said.10 learning at home.
10 Steiner, David. November 2019. “Staying on the shelf: Why rigorous new curricula aren’t being used.”
Washington, D.C.: Fordham Institute.
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Blending Curriculum and Instructional
Support: Lessons Learned
Blending Curriculum and for curriculum and pedagogy are done
together, it makes more sense to a teacher. It
Instructional Support:
doesn’t feel like two separate decisions; it
Lessons Learned feels like one. You may not label them as
‘curriculum’ or ‘pedagogy,’ but you intuitively
understand it’s good teaching.”
For 20 years, NIET has worked with district
partners across the country to improve ”
classroom instruction. We have learned that
the most effective professional learning
blends support for “what” is being taught
When coaching and support for
with “how” it is being taught.
curriculum and pedagogy are done
together, it makes more sense to a
Katrina Harris –a fourth grade teacher at
QueensboroughLeadership Academy in teacher. It doesn’t feel like two separate
Caddo Parish Public Schools, a high-poverty decisions; it feels like one. You may not
district located in northwest Louisiana – label them as ‘curriculum’ or ‘pedagogy,’
knows firsthand the power of blending these but you intuitively understand it’s good
supports. “It’s about taking the intended teaching.
curriculum activities and understanding the
—Katrina Harris, Fourth Grade Teacher
alignment among the learning objectives,
standards, and assessment, and then making Working with NIET partner districts like
instructional decisions that help students to Caddo, we have seen firsthand how more
reach the learning goal,” Harris said. Caddo demanding instructional materials require
Parish uses the common language of NIET’s significant improvements in classroom
instructional rubric to help marry the “what” teaching to enable students to master
and the “how” to maximize teachers’ higher-level content. That is why we are so
success. Teachers receive feedback on the committed to creating the conditions
instructional strategies that help students necessary for every teacher to have access to
own their learning to grow in their a high-quality curriculum and the
understanding of content. instructional support that equips them to use
those materials to accelerate student
Katrina also noted: “Teachers need to make learning.
effective use of academic feedback, student
grouping, student differentiation, and other
instructional practices that enable us to
deliver the content in ways that support
student success. When coaching and support
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Blending Curriculum and Instructional
Support: Lessons Learned
This paper outlines the lessons we have 5. Recognize the stages of curriculum
learned with our partners as they have implementation and what teachers need
adopted and implemented high-quality to progress to higher stages.
curricula in their schools, particularly those
6. Ensure that districts work closely with
serving large numbers of low-income
schools to plan for, communicate, and
students. These six key lessons for
implement school-based professional
implementing a high-quality curriculum are:
learning that blends support for
curriculum and instructional practice.
1. Focus on leaders first.
2. Create time, structures, and formal roles While the selection process for a new
to support ongoing, school-based curriculum is critical to success, the lessons
collaborative professional learning. we share here focus exclusively on the
challenge of implementing that new
3. Adopt a research-based instructional
curriculum to maximize student learning. We
rubric to guide conversations about
also discuss how educators can continue to
teaching and learning with the
grow in curriculum implementation after the
curriculum.
initial push.
4. Anchor coaching and feedback in the
curriculum.
Katrina Harris, Caddo Parish, Louisiana
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Blending Curriculum and Instructional
Support: Lesson 1
1. Focus on leaders first. most districts do not provide much more
than one day on this initial training.11
“Teachers need at least 2-3 full days of
Truly understanding curriculum and its upfront training and a handful of ongoing
connection to standards and assessment is touchpoints throughout the year to take on
complex and time-consuming work. If school their new curriculum,” said Rebecca Kockler,
leaders and their leadership team members consultant and former assistant
do not understand the curriculum deeply, superintendent for academics at the
they will not be effective in supporting Louisiana Department of Education. “This
teachers to do the same. training should also be led by someone who
is truly expert in the curriculum.”
Following a decision about what curriculum
to implement, districts must provide Introductory training must then be followed
sufficient time for school leaders and their by opportunities for collaborative work at all
leadership team members to understand the levels –district leaders, school leaders,
curriculum and its alignment with other coaches, and teachers. Several weeks or
elements of the broader instructional even months of leader engagement with the
system, including standards, instruction, curriculum create a foundation of knowledge
assessment, and evaluation and feedback. that is critical as the new curriculum is rolled
The investment leaders make in this early out to teachers. This learning establishes the
stage, before bringing the new curriculum foundation for leaders to embed the
into schools and classrooms, will pay curriculum in school systems and structures
dividends as other structures and systems and continue to build on this knowledge
are put in place to support implementation. throughout the year. “It’s not just that they
know the curriculum, but that they know
First, upfront training on the curriculum itself how to uphold the expectation that the
is essential to ensure leaders understand the curriculum is taught,” Kocklersaid. “That is
scope and sequence, layout, and decision an action orientation that is critical but rarely
points within the curriculum. Unfortunately, exists.”
11 Kane, Thomas and David Blazer. March 2019. “Learning by the Book.” Center for Education Policy Research,
Harvard University.
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Blending Curriculum and Instructional
Support: Lesson 1
As a new curriculum is introduced to weekly team meeting structures to ensure
teachers, many may be resistant to changing curriculum implementation is effective and
their teaching approach and adopting the aligned to all elements they use to make
new materials. Having used other materials decisions for individual teachers and
and resources for years, teachers may be students.
concerned about completely abandoning
familiar materials and often simply choose a One such partner is DeSoto Parish Schools,
few ideas or strategies from the new located 40 miles south of Shreveport in
curriculum to supplement their existing Mansfield, Louisiana. DeSoto has been
lessons. Having teacher leaders and other recognized for its sustained growth, moving
school leaders discuss the rationale and from a district ranking of 45th to 12th in the
strengths of the new materials is an state. The district brings together district
important strategy for supporting teachers in instructional leaders, school leaders, and
implementing the new curriculum with teacher leaders to develop plans for how to
fidelity. maximize curriculum usage within the
instructional system of the district. This
As part of the training for district and school includes weekly professional learning in each
leaders, an important investment is to set school.
aside the time to understand the “big
picture” or arc of the curriculum and how it Teacher leaders, called master teachers in
connects to adopted standards and current DeSoto and other NIET partner districts,
assessments. This investment in reviewing serve as members of the school leadership
alignment within the instructional system team, guide weekly professional learning
enhances district and school leaders’ ability teams, and coach in classrooms, putting
to analyze and address potential gaps among them in a critical role for successful
these elements, areas where the curriculum curriculum implementation. The district-level
might not reach the level of rigor of the planning meetings ensure principals and
standards, or where additional resources and teacher leaders are well-versed and
supports might be needed for students who comfortable with the new curriculum before
are significantly above or below grade-level supporting teachers in using it.
expectations.
Master Teacher Jessica Parker at North
Of course, opportunities to work DeSoto Upper Elementary School shared her
collaboratively with peers to deepen experience. “The district gave us permission,
knowledge of the curriculum “arc” and its and the time and space, to grapple with the
impact on the instructional system should curriculum,” she said. “Then, we worked
not be a one-time event but continue in together to figure out how to effectively use
professional learning opportunities the curriculum to address the needs we were
throughout the year. NIET partner districts seeing in classrooms.”
and schools use teacher leader roles and
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Blending Curriculum and Instructional
Support: Lesson 1
Monthly master teacher meetings provide an appropriate to make adjustments or
ongoing opportunity to dig into curricular instructional decisions while remaining
needs with attention to improving within the curriculum. Marvin Rainey, a
instructional practices based in part on district-based instructional coach who serves
student work analysis. as executive master teacher in Caddo Parish,
noted, “Having consistent messaging to
This investment of time is also important in teachers was really important as challenges
other districts. Goshen Community Schools, a in classrooms started to arise. Scheduled,
northern Indiana school district with a large monthly, hourlongmeetings helped master
number of English language learners, adopted teachers from across schools to stay on the
a new writing curriculum for grades K-8 at the same page, discuss adjustments that needed
start of the 2019-20 school year. To ensure to be made, and work through problems
that teachers and school leaders are together. This strengthened the coherence
comfortable with the new materials, the and consistency of curriculum
district conducts weekly professional learning implementation districtwide while being
for teacher leaders and principals. These responsive to the realities teachers were
weekly, 90-minute district-level meetings are facing in their classrooms over the course of
modeled on the school-based professional the year.”
learning system that has been in place in all
Goshen schools for the past nine years. ”
“It has been invaluable to have time
allocated by the district to learn how the
This strengthened the coherence and
new writing curriculum can be integrated
consistency of curriculum
into weekly professional development
sessions. As a teacher leader, it’s essential for implementation districtwide while
me to fully understand the new materials in being responsive to the realities
order to support the classroom teachers in teachers were facing in their classrooms
my school,” said Lauren Moore, a master over the course of the year.
teacher at West Goshen Elementary, which
—Marvin Rainey, Instructional Coach
has improved from a D to an A rating on the
Indiana state report card. “I’m grateful to These ongoing, collaborative learning
have the opportunity to collaborate and structures for all levels of leadership also
learn from the other teacher leaders and regularly elevate areas where additional
principals in my district to ensure that our coherence is needed to ensure teachers have
students are receiving the best instruction.” what they need to align expectations with
the resources they have, the data they are
Through this collaborative work, school gathering, and the feedback they are
leadership teams build a common receiving.
understanding of when it is (and is not)
9