In his 2011 ASCD best-seller "Focus: Elevating the Essentials to Radically Improve Student Learning," author Mike Schmoker described a fresh approach to K-12 teaching built on three core elements: a focused and coherent curriculum; clear, structured lessons; and purposeful reading and writing, or authentic literacy. Now, in "Leading…

How do assessments for learning differ from assessments of learning? What is the purpose of grading? After nearly two decades of immersion in standards-based curriculua and instruction, our nation's educators are often still confounded by the (admittedly complex) landscape of standards, assessment, and reporting. In "Answers to Essential…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) challenges state education agencies (SEAs) to improve student outcomes by addressing the student-, teacher-, and school-level factors that drive achievement gains. This Guide for Identifying Evidence-Based Interventions for School Improvement is intended to help State Education Agencies (SEAs) carefully…

This guidebook provides an introduction to Instructional Improvement Systems (IIS) for State education agency (SEA) managers and program leads. Functional components of a theoretical IIS model are discussed and used as a reference point for the introduction a seven-step planning and implementation cycle designed to guide SEAs in the development of…

Once your school has established the reason and the will to move forward with Response to Intervention (RTI), you still have to navigate all the difficult steps of implementing core instruction with a multitiered system of supports, data-based problem solving, progress monitoring, and universal screening. That's where this ASCD (Association for…

This is curriculum review guideline that was used by the author to review the Primary School Curriculum of the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) in Bangladesh. This includes the procedures and formats those were employed and would serve as a guide to any other user. (Contains 2 figures.) [This report was prepared with the Institute of…

Examines questions, answers, levels, stages, roles, climate, and support as aspects of school-level decision making involved in introducing development education in the school. (RH)

Regardless of where you are in your school improvement process, here's a book that helps you make sure you have all the right elements working for you in the right way. The authors take you through the core processes that are essential for all school improvement efforts--from establishing your mission to differentiating your supervision based on…

Development of programs for the gifted requires planning (at the school and classroom levels) based on a conception of gifted education and consideration of goals, content, differentiation strategies, and organizational form. Program operation involves subprocesses of program adoption, program delivery, and program institutionalization. (DB)

This guide outlines the initial work and includes recommendations for schools and districts on how to implement an integrated science program. Chapters include: (1) "What Is Integrated Science and What Does It Look Like at the High School Level?"; (2) "Coherence in High School Science" (F. James Rutherford); (3) "Thinking about Change: What Will…

A checklist is provided for development and implementation of a health education curriculum. (JD)

While this article deals with the construction of a curriculum in aesthetic education, the foundational/ functional plan outlined by the author transcends the topic of aesthetic education and provides numerous insights into the problems and prospects for curriculum building and educational change. (Editor/SJL)

Presents a conceptual framework intended to indicate the need to consider curriculum implementation, staff development, and evaluation as integrally linked in the curriculum change process and to reinforce the idea of involving teachers meaningfully. (RS)

This booklet is designed to assist administrators and teachers in planning, developing, and implementing K-12 theater instruction. The materials presented in the booklet are intended to aid local school systems in planning local curricula, developing a local philosophy, defining local goals, evaluating the extent to which the goals are contained…

Outdated, unknown, or unneeded amounts of dangerous or inappropriate chemicals are often found in K-12 schools across the nation, potentially putting students and staff at risk. Because of the nature of some of the chemicals, even small amounts may present a risk. Thus, dangerous chemicals represent one of the critical environmental health and…