As we approach the start of another school year, there are many staff members who play a role in the success of the school. A CLI Model district has designated leadership teams with specific roles. The Curriculum Coordinating Council (CCC) is responsible for making academic recommendations for the district, while Subject Area Committees (SACs) are grade level and/or course representatives designing curriculum, instructional plans, and assessments for a content area. …Read More
The End of the School Year is in Sight
Yes, the end of the school year is in sight. Teachers are worried about finishing the curriculum, checking in books, taking down the posters from the walls, entering grades, and all of their other year-end tasks. Administrators are ticking items off of their own lists and sending out reminders and final instructions for the last days of school even as they contemplate their summer worklists. Everyone is anticipating liberation from this school year. This is a typical ending for many schools across the country. There is just a seemingly abrupt ending followed by a collective sigh.
But, what if it was different?Read More
Using Google Sites to Increase Curriculum Implementation in the Classroom
Within the last year, over half a dozen current and former CLI districts have opted to organize their local curriculums using the new CLI Online Curriculum Library, a Google Site template. The benefits for districts using Google (now called G-Suite for Education) are widely known: free email accounts (Gmail), file storage (Google Drive), and file creation (Google Docs). One application that may be underutilized due to time or training constraints is Google Sites. Google Sites could easily serve as your district’s intranet, a closed network only accessible by those within your district.Read More
Systematic Implementation to Achieve a Systemic Vision
In current school accreditation models, the existence of a systems approach is valued and evidence of that approach is necessary for a favorable review. Accreditation teams are looking for indications of examining the whole system as well as documentation on taking care of the details. One accreditation team’s review of a school district stated that “The district has a strong understanding of the big picture but does not seem to have a method of reaching their desired outcomes.”Read More
Using Data to Improve Instruction in Five Steps or Less
Now, review the three essential pieces already mentioned above: curriculum, assessment, and instruction. Begin with the locally-written curriculum. Check the alignment of the curriculum to the state standards; particularly the standard that students performed poorly on. Ask yourself or your PLC these questions: Does the local curriculum require the same skills and knowledge as those in the state standards? Is the “essence” of the standard the same when it was …Read More
Conflict Resolution Techniques for Facilitators
The keys to mediating conflict are to identify the signs of dysfunction, determine when to intervene, and provide the correct guidance to reach a resolution. When issues are more involved, it may require multiple meetings to come to an agreement. Using a systematic approach to meetings is just one dimension of being a good facilitator. To create a positive experience for everyone, facilitators should also be adept at mediating conflict and leading groups to solutions through various questioning techniques.Read More
Initial CLI District Response to 6 Key Elements of the Every Student Succeeds Act
Analysis of relevant elements of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) suggests topics of discussion for the CLI district’s curriculum coordinating council. Although those who prepared ESSA say the act places most responsibility for establishing provisions to ensure school accountability on states, many stipulations included at the federal level do not allow much leeway for creativity or alternative interpretations. It is therefore suggested that curriculum coordinating councils place the selected relevant topics found in the table below on discussion agendas. Read More
Curriculum is a Roadmap
“Curriculum” is discussed on a daily basis in conversations within schools among administrators, teachers, support staff, and outside stakeholders. Strangely enough, it is a term that carries fundamental misconceptions that make those conversations difficult. Unless everyone involved in the conversation has the same definition for curriculum, what is said and what is heard are often very different.Read More
Communicating with Parents: Mediums and Methods for Success
We live in a fast-paced world where society as a whole communicates and receives feedback within seconds. This has become the expected norm in social settings and the business world and has also affected how educators connect with the parents of our nation’s most important product — children. Here are some keys to communicate efficiently and effectively in this ever-changing world.Read More
The Excitement and Challenge of Beginning a New School Year
Reviewing the status of ongoing initiatives and planning for the current year should become routine. In the years following the development of curriculum documents, the implementation of curriculum, and the writing of assessments, there are often other initiatives that must come into play to further improve student learning. While we at Curriculum Leadership Institute (CLI), caution school districts about starting too many initiatives at once, there is a time and place where outside support for improving instructional strategies, improving the implementation of a new resource, using data analysis strategies to effectively critique our efforts, or other needs must be addressed.Read More