This study aimed to determine the perspectives of Louisiana high school students, particularly Black students, on the diversity of the state-mandated Tier 1 English I curriculum and the correlation between their academic self-concept, curriculum diversity perceptions, and their achievement level on the LEAP 2025 English I high stakes assessment.…

During the 2020-2021 academic year, Virginia piloted a state-designed secondary African American history elective in 16 school divisions. Using the framework of Racial Pedagogical Content Knowledge (RPCK), this study examined the treatment of race in the new course by analyzing the state-created curriculum materials and interviewing three teachers…

Background: Teaching creative writing in the early grades provides learners with the opportunity to express their thoughts and ideas which contributes to their holistic development. Curriculum documents have been neatly laid out, yet in practice, it is challenging, and teachers struggle to find effective ways of teaching and assessing creative…

Currently, the perceived use of critical theoretical frameworks to shape instruction in public K-12 education is undergoing intense scrutiny in popular and political debate. Chief among such frameworks has been Critical Race Theory (CRT), which, at the time of this writing, has been legally banned or restricted in eighteen states -- with similar…

Adolescence can be a very challenging time for students. Students are not all equipped with the social-emotional skills to successfully navigate middle school into young adulthood. Students display adverse behaviors, such as peer physical aggression, peer verbal aggression, and defiance to adults. Students are not demonstrating problem-solving…

The Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings and Standards (OSEUS), a vision of many individuals, tribes, and organizations for several decades, were realized through legislation in 2007. In 2021, the South Dakota Department of Education, South Dakota Department of Tribal Relations, Office of Indian Education, and Region 11 Comprehensive Center…

Composing narrative text is complex, requiring development of knowledge of genre specific and general writing knowledge, and the ability to sequence and convey real or imagined experiences, reactions, and an effective ending. Teachers, however, typically do not receive adequate professional learning needed for effective instruction in narrative…

Previous papers in this issue of "JCS" have presented case studies of the state-based curriculum commissions that developed the "Illinois Learning Standards" of 1997 and Norway's "Laereplanverket 1997" ("L97") (1997). The studies were developed using as a framework a body of German research that sees…

This case study of the development of the "Illinois Learning Standards" of 1997 parallels a study of the development of the Norwegian compulsory school curriculum of 1997, "Laereplanverket 1997." The pair of case studies is designed to explore the administration of state-based curriculum-making and, in particular, the use of…

This paper introduces the questions and approaches of a five-nation cross-cultural study of state-based curriculum-making discussed in this issue of "JCS." The paper reviews the two decade-long interest of many nations in state-based curriculum-making and presents a framework for thinking about state-based curriculum-making as a tool of…

The paper identifies three tools that support the administrative instrument of a state-based curriculum commission: compartmentalization, licensing, and segmentation. These tools channel the state's curriculum-making towards forms of symbolic rather than regulatory action. The state curriculum becomes a framework for the ideological governance of…

Teacher educators needing to meet requirements of state licensing bodies and accrediting organizations are in a position similar to that of K-12 teachers: they must adhere to externally imposed standards and curricular requirements while keeping their courses rigorous, interesting, and critical. This article reports results from a self-study…

The early phases of teachers' professional careers are multi-layered and informed by many factors, including teachers' values, their own experiences in schools, and the nested contexts of their professional employment. While in teachers' everyday lives government policies sometimes operate beneath the surface rather than overtly, these policies…

In this article, literacy, which is conceived of as a set of cognitive skills, is juxtaposed with a sociocultural orientation that sees literacy as a set of social practices for the production of meaning. Cognitive, skills-based pedagogies treat literacy as universal, autonomous, and independent of context, whereas sociocultural literacy…

Educators and schools have a responsibility to ensure that young people become engaged and knowledgeable citizens. A recent report on high school civics education nationwide, "The State of Civics Education," finds a wide variation in state requirements and levels of youth engagement. Only nine states and the District of Columbia require…