Roles & Responsibilities Regarding Curriculum Writing & Implementation
In order for the curriculum review and development plan to take shape, there must be a strong team in place to help guide the process. It is essential to identify key people at the district and school levels to help support the work while offering clear and meaningful roles for participants. Developing and maintaining a current and rigorous curriculum is the shared responsibility of educators in the Easton, Redding, and Region 9 School District. Through purposeful collaboration and the input and feedback from stakeholders in the process, a usable document is created that meets the visionary beliefs of the district and the ever-changing needs of its learners.
Boards of Education
The curriculum subcommittee studies curriculum, courses, and textbooks that are recommended by the administration. The Assistant Superintendent works with the curriculum subcommittee Chair to develop agenda items that require the committee’s attention. The committee reviews and discusses curriculum changes brought by the administration and recommends curriculum to the full Board.
The Boards of Education recognize that curriculum development is an ongoing process and helps ensure that curriculum is developed, approved, taught, and assessed. Once curriculum is adopted by the Board of Education, teachers are required to teach the curriculum in the manner that will have the greatest impact on student learning. Finally, the Board approves policy related to curriculum development and delivery to support the Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent in overseeing curriculum implementation.
District Administration
The District Administration has four primary functions in curriculum leadership. First, curriculum needs to be vertically and horizontally aligned Pre-K-12. This coordination occurs on each grade level and department where common content is taught. In a tri-district model, it is especially important to consider the the pathways within each discipline that will converge when students reach the regional high school. Ideally, the Pre-K-8 districts share a common curriculum to the extent possible recognizing that variations within staffing and budgets play a role in alignment.
Second, teachers need high quality resources that support curriculum implementation.
In some cases a resource may consist of a textbook or other instructional materials. The district is responsible for ensuring that teachers have these resources available to them.
Third, the district administration will facilitate and plan professional learning activities to support faculty in their implementation of the curriculum with fidelity.
Finally, district administration needs to ensure that budget funds are available to support curriculum development, resource allocation, and adequate training for faculty.
Curriculum Steering
The Curriculum Steering Committee is a joint district wide Pre-K-12 committee comprised of teachers, specialists, and administrators. This committee sets the course for major district initiatives within curriculum and instruction, aligned with the vision and mission of the districts. In its many years of existence, the committee has engaged in many studies and was paused by the pandemic in 2020 after confirming the transition from public-facing curriculum communication through an online digital “filing cabinet” to a homegrown system that was designed based on a review of other districts’ curriculum communication tools and parent survey feedback. This important committee will continue regular meetings in the 2024-2025 school year with fresh thinking aligned with strategic planning of the current district leadership team.
The committee’s responsibilities will be refined in line with strategic planning within curriculum and instruction. The Assistant Superintendent chairs the Curriculum Steering Committee which meets several times per year. A key role of the committee is monitoring the development of curriculum implementation, curriculum planning, and curriculum revision. Developing an evaluation plan for existing curriculum and programs is another important responsibility.
Content Leaders
Department chairs, coaches, and content specialists are responsible for curriculum development activities under the direction of the Assistant Superintendent. These duties include the following:
Organize and facilitate committees to develop and review the curriculum and set priorities.
Provide/facilitate professional development needed to implement the curriculum.
Provide support to principals and teachers in their role of implementing and monitoring the curriculum and professional development.
Provide support for analysis and interpretation of assessment data.
Building Administration
School principals are the instructional leaders in our schools. It is their responsibility to work closely with teachers to ensure that the curriculum is delivered at the school level. As a result, principals need a working knowledge of the curriculum and the instructional practices that have the greatest impact on student learning. Principals monitor the delivery of the district curriculum through some common techniques which include:
Frequent classroom walkthroughs.
Leadership and participation in vertical, grade level, and other professional learning team meetings
Informal and formal classroom observations (department chairs hold primary observation responsibility at the high school level)
Working with teachers to review and interpret assessment data and student work.
Curriculum Writing Teams
Curriculum writing teams are established to write specific curriculum for a grade level or course. While these teams are led by a department chair, content leader, or Assistant Superintendent, members are teachers because they are closest to the work and content experts. In addition to developing curriculum or ensuring that a scope and sequence follows a natural progression, curriculum writing teams can also develop assessments or focus on a specific task. Generally, these teams are ad hoc and have a clear focus for a defined period of time.
Teachers
Teachers are responsible for delivering the district curriculum and using the instructional practices that are most effective for students. These practices are described in the front matter of each curriculum. Our instructional practices are research-based and described in the CT Common Core of Teaching (CCT) rubric for effective teaching and the CLASS instructional observation tool. Teachers assess learning with a variety of state, district, and classroom assessments. Information from formative assessments needs to drive instructional decisions in the classroom and involve students in the learning process. Teachers assess standards in all disciplines in a variety of formal and informal ways, and communicate strengths and weaknesses to students and parents.