curriculum – Page 4 – New Learning Infrastructure

28. Building a Meaningful Subject Area Mastery Statement

The heart of the new learning infrastructure is a curriculum designed to be substantive in terms of student mastery.

26. Transformation Requires Leaving a Comfort Zone and Exploring the Unknown

Everything in human learning depends on communication. Science and math are no exception. Numbers, symbols, problem solving equations, research strategies, construction, and virtually everything else depends on being able to understand others through language.

24. Long Range Plan’s Influence on Subject Area Committee (SAC) Work

As leader and resource persons, our job was to help fellow committee members convert a passive curriculum into one that was focused, spiraled, teachable, and measurable.

22. Accountability and Attention to Detail in the New Learning Infrastructure

While serving on other committees, I had been taught the “yes, and” principle. To allow myself to entertain reasons why someone else’s ideas had merit. Could ideas be made even better with a little tweaking?

20. Birthing the New Learning Infrastructure

It brought about focus and an understanding that the district’s academic program would be built and implemented on solid procedural and philosophical ground.

14. School District Organization, Leadership and New Teacher Professionalism

Chasms have opened because schools were and still are supported by a fragile infrastructure.

8. The Design Down and Deliver Up Mindset: Taking Mastery Seriously

Everything is intertwined and mutually inclusive, and we teachers must recognize that school is just one way to make our society better. Through helping our students be open to new ideas and inspiring them to become significant contributors.

7. Words and Wordsmithing: Tools and Skills in the New Learning Infrastructure

Our professors had each one of us present and defend our course mastery statement. In several ways. Student readiness. Alignment with both the general and subject area mastery statements. Logical spiraling considerations with other grade levels. Scope in the context of time allotments and instructional configurations.

6. Trust, Respect, and Attention to Detail: Symbolic of Dedication

In school districts, subject area and grade level mastery statements are worthless if there is no process in place for “delivering up.” As difficult as it is to collaboratively create those statements, it is infinitely more challenging to make sure they have an impact.