The Common Core State Standards, released in June 2010, offer an opportunity to shift education away from shallow, test-prep instruction and toward a focus on key cognitive skills, writes Conley. Two consortia of states are now developing common assessments to measure these standards--assessments that will be designed to capture deeper, more…

Offers tenets to help curriculum developers dodge the "landmines" that ruin curriculum development efforts. (Author)

To develop an interdisciplinary curriculum, a district needs a field-tested action plan. This curriculum mapping plan's four phases--conducting internal and external action research, developing a proposal, implementing and monitoring a pilot unit, and adopting the program--can be accomplished over a three-year period. Procedures are described in…

Suggests that the process of curriculum change is becoming increasingly constrained by collective bargaining and argues that a systems model of collective bargaining must be designed that will be conceived as a consensus-building process and will integrate all the elements essential to the operation of a school district. (JG)

Successful implementation of new programs requires planning, an appropriate strategy, and staff development. (Author)

In 1985, the National Geographic Society launched a new Geography Education Program to revitalize geography instruction in the nation's schools. Geographic Alliances in 27 states mobilize teachers, administrators, and policymakers to push for improved geography curricula. The society also produces high-impact publications and sponsors special…

Through a new curriculum model called World Class Education, Virginia hopes to encourage its schools to transform themselves voluntarily. The program is guided by six principles: focus on outcomes, school accountability, the assumption that all students can learn, the importance of collaboration and teamwork, the connectivity of learning, and the…

Over 2,000 schools in 49 states are using the Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) program as their Chapter 1 or learning-disabilities programs in grades 4-7. The program works consistently for a wide range of students and circumstances, relies on a state-of-the-art curriculum, and provides intensive teacher training. HOTS does not benefit…

Discusses the importance of emphasizing the active role of the student and of considering nonschool areas of student learning in the curriculum development process. Available from Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1701 K Street, N.W., Suite 1100, Washington, D.C. 20006, single copies, $2.00. (JG)

The crucial objective of the transitional curriculum is to make only a small intended change at a time, uncomplicated by other considerations. To illustrate, an elementary science curriculum is presented that features an inquiry approach with the pupils handling materials. (Author/MLF)

Describes a short-term intervention program, the Awareness, Readiness, and Commitment (ARC) workshop, that provides the opportunity for school staffs to explore factors that have utility for effective change. (Author/MLF)

A model for change is currently being tested in a collaborative effort between a national research center and a large school district: the Research and Development Center for Teacher Education at the University of Texas at Austin and the Jefferson County, Colorado, Public School District. (Author/MLF)

Eugene (Oregon) Public Schools want to replace the traditional content-driven curriculum with a general concepts-based curriculum stressing the relationships among ideas. To help district educators understand the new model, a coin metaphor describing the two interlocking areas of curriculum (learning core conceptual knowledge and strategic…