Transcript Slide 1

June 13, 2012
 To
develop an integrated,
cohesive and rigorous curriculum,
instruction and assessment
system that ensures student
achievement.
Our vision is a cohesive and coherent curriculum,
instruction and assessment system that will
enhance the education of all Westport students.
This system will be easily accessed and
understood by all school constituents, including
students, parents, teachers, administrators, and
community members. The curriculum, instruction
and assessment system will be continuously
evaluated to ensure academic excellence across
all grade levels and disciplines for all students.
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What do students need to know and be able
to do?
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•How will we know they have learned it?
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•What will we do when they haven’t?
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•What will we do when they already know it?
A coherent curriculum is one that holds
together, that makes sense as a whole; and
it’s parts, whatever they are, are unified and
connected by the sense of the whole.
-James Beane (1999)
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To develop learning goals PreK-12 that will improve
curricular and instructional articulation,
communication and student achievement. Students,
parents, community members, and teachers will know
what is expected of Westport students.
To allow us to have a clear understanding of what
students are learning and when, leading to increased
opportunities for integration, enhancing our
students’ abilities to make connections.
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The role of the Curriculum Council is to act as an
advisory group on curriculum matters and global
issues for the School Committee and Administration
of the Westport Community Schools District. Its
mission is to provide a forum within the District to
study, analyze, discuss and ultimately recommend
the possibilities and/or alternatives for curriculum
matters and global issues in the District. The
Council serves the District as the main vehicle to
review and reconsider additions, deletions, and
changes to the District’s curricula. Finally, it
encompasses in its activities a representation of the
stakeholders within the District.
Overarching goal:
To increase the quality of instruction and rigor at all grade levels in
all content areas.
Deliverable Products:
Defined exemplary skills and content at each grade level, PreK-12
Measurable performance benchmarks in skills and content PreK-12
High quality units of instruction that explicitly teach to the defined
skills and content and include best practices and common
assessments
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Connects schools through curriculum,
instruction & assessment alignment utilizing
backward planning.
Allows each grade level teacher to know what
curriculum is taught both before and after
his/her class. The teacher builds on that prior
learning with the knowledge that the
curriculum has been taught, and knows what
lies ahead for students.
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Defines the vertical sequencing of the
curriculum, which cuts down on review and
repetition.
Provides for alignment within and across
grade levels. The alignment is both horizontal
and vertical in that teachers within any grade
level know what is to be taught, as well as
both what has been and what will be taught.
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What and where are the best units and
instructional practices taking place
and how do we replicate those across
the school system?
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Defined: Common units bring together the
best units, lessons and practices into units of
study to be delivered in common to have
students at identified grade levels, with the
end result of administering common
assessments.
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The development of common units is
informed by the vertical team process.
The goal is to units in common for each
grade level in the areas of ELA, Social Studies,
Science, math, health and wellness, etc.
Units may be integrated between content
areas or stand alone.
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Essential Questions: these are the crucial
questions that a unit ultimately seeks to allow
students to answer.
Learning Task Possibilities: the exercises that
enable students to understand important
elements of the essential questions –
developed for the spectrum of student ability
to allow for differentiated instruction.
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Assessment Task: the tool used to determine
the student’s level of mastery of the essential
questions.
Rubrics: a specific scoring guide that includes
the standards by which a student’s
performance on the assessment is measured.
Critical Thinking Skills: units include the
explicit instruction & measurement of critical
thinking skills.
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What do students need to know,
understand and be able to do?
How will we know they have learned
it?
What will we do when they haven’t?
What will we do when they already
know it?
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The development of common assessments is
informed by the VT process. These
assessments may be used to evaluate student
skills and knowledge at various benchmark
points.
Every Common Unit includes a Common
Assessment, but not every Common
Assessment includes a Common Unit (i.e.,
common writing assessment)
Teams were formed in January 2012 – ELA,
math, science, social studies, and data
 Develop Mission statement for
leadership team/department
 Draft PreK-12 Program of
Studies/Overview
 Conduct Curriculum Audit – where are
we/where do we need to go?
“The mission of the WCS Science
Leadership Team is to facilitate
communication and sharing between
buildings, develop a consistent
district-wide curriculum, K-12 and to
recommend professional development
opportunities that support the goals
of the science department."
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The team conducted a needs assessment of
all science teachers in the district to gather
input on the status of curriculum work and to
develop a list of priorities and needs.
Areas of greatest need
#1 Equipment / Supplies / Kits
#2 Books / Current Textbooks
#3 Technology
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Recruit membership so that all grade levels
are represented
Map existing units and review for coherence
Continue to develop the curriculum in a Unit
of Study format (summer institute)
The Westport Community Schools believe that all students should
be engaged in developmentally appropriate and rigorous
mathematical curricula. Students will attain a higher level of
mathematical knowledge and problem solving ability by:
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Developing a strong foundation of number sense, spatial
awareness and patterns.
Using reasoning and logic to independently solve real world
problems and authentic situations.
Using evidence and reasoning to justify and explain
mathematical solutions.
Students will be able to:
 Develop an understanding of multiplication and division
within 100 using various strategies (repeated
addition/subtraction, arrays, area, equal groups);
automatically recall multiplication facts through 10x10
 Develop an understanding of fractions, with a focus on
unit fractions (i.e.,1/2, 1/3, 1/4)
 Decompose rectangular shapes using a) arrays with
rows and columns and b) area and perimeter; relate to
multiplication
 Describe and analyze two-dimensional shapes
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Time is needed to:
◦ Finish writing Math Curriculum in unit format (UBD).
◦ Check for alignment with the written curriculum to the new
Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks (CCSS).
◦ Solidify our understanding of the transition to the new Frameworks:
 What is going to be assessed in 2013? 2014?
 What gaps, if any, in the transition process need to be
highlighted and addressed and at which grade-levels?
• Comprehension 2010
• Word Study
2010
• Research
2011
• Writing
2012
• Speaking and Listening
2013
The Writing
Benchmarks
21st Century
Skills:
Include:
Media text,
Presentation,
Multimedia
Types and
Purposes:
Argument,
Informative,
Narrative
Range:
Language:
On-demand
and process
Grammar,
Conventions,
DESE Suggestion: Design one unit to pilot in the spring of 2012,
two-three others for 2012-2013
Next steps>>>
In June 2012 - Work with grade-level design teams of three to four
teachers
Begin 2013 - Create Benchmarks for Speaking and Listening
In June 2013 - Create calendar map of standards and skills
Mission Statement
Our mission is to facilitate in the vertical aligning of a curriculum
which will recognize the political, economic, geographic and
social implications of the past in order to analyze those
influences of the present and the future.
Goal
Our goal is to enable students to become informed and
contributing citizens in a diverse global society.
Summary
•Survey all Social studies teachers,
collected the data in a chart…below for an
example.
Grad
e
Level
Unit or Topic
Are
Teaching?
Key
Points/ideas
5
Unit 1Location
YES
-geography
-populations
-climate
-affect on
movement of
people
Materials
needed
Next Steps
•From the Data there might be an
over teaching of US History I?
•World History II seems to be
under taught in the data?
Red:
Significantly
below average
Yellow: Below
average
Green: On
target
Blue: Exceeds
target
29
5%
10% to 15%
10
8
1
50%-65%
15% to 30%
Individual student data
Response to intervention format
4-6 week intervals
Data follows the student
Team approach
Antecedent to Special Education
services
• Best practices/an individualized
approach
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As Assistant Superintendent of the
Westport Schools, my belief is that the
key to unlocking the greatness within
us is about all of us working together
to achieve the goals that will ensure
equity and excellence for all Westport
students. Special thanks to all who
worked on the curriculum this year!
“…it is no harder to build something
GREAT than to build something
GOOD.”
– Jim Collins Good to Great