I currently have the distinct honor and privilege of teaching in District 75 at P368K. In my school community our community, families and teachers all have access to a written curriculum equally.  In my school our students are alternately assessed through assessments like the New York State Alternate Assessment (NYSAA) , Student Annual Needs Determination Inventory (SANDI)  and Formative Assessment of Standards Task (FAST).However , due to the specific needs of our students my school focuses on a  Social Emotional Curriculum (hidden curriculum)  to meet our students where their at. This is because our students suffer from severe disabilities inhibited around countering emotional regulation and behavior management. Curriculum will vary from class to class because of the varied proficiency levels in our classrooms. Through real world application our students can learn and progress at their own pace. As a school we use supplies and resources that aid student learning because needs of students come first. 

 

My assistant principal said that everyone teaching the same subject should be teaching the same things at the same pace, but in practice it does not always work that way. Teachers slow down and reteach content as is needed for their students, and put their own spin on the topics. While we could share PowerPoints and lesson plans, we mostly create them for and by ourselves, and touch base with each other to see if everything is alright. As a result, the learning experience in a class, especially for non-Regents courses, can be very different depending on which teacher students get. 

 

In terms of shared supplies for Living Environment, we have enough textbooks and workbooks in the department storage closet that all teachers can distribute to their students, but it is up to the teachers discretion whether they want to use the books. Psychobiology doesn’t have enough books for all sections of the class, and supplies in Forensics have to be shared. I don’t teach Physiology and Anatomy, so I am not privy to how the teachers who teach that subject manage the supplies and curriculum, but I imagine it is similar to that of the other electives.  

 

My general feeling regarding the lack of robust written curricula is that there should be one for each subject so that students moving from one class to another receive the same unbroken chain of information and instruction from one semester to another from their teachers. Also, new teachers or teachers unfamiliar with the subjects can have more help when they first teach the classes, instead of figuring it out for themselves. For the students, a curriculum will let them know what they will be learning so they can anticipate what is coming and make more informed decisions when selecting classes for their future coursework. 

I am fortunate enough that in my school all teachers K-8th grade and support staff have equal access to our written curriculum for reading, writing and math digitally. The teachers also have hard copies of the Teacher Editions for the written curriculum. We can access any grade level digitally that we need that will strengthen our instruction so this makes differentiation in the classroom much easier to plan. We have been using our current reading curriculum for about two years now. At first, it was overwhelming to implement because there are so many components that make up the curriculum. However, we were provided with an adequate amount of professional development to help us get familiar with the curriculum and which components would be the most important to use that fits our individual students’ needs.  The students also have equal access to the curricular materials and supplies. Students receive hard copies of the student notebooks. They also have access digitally to the written curriculum. They have their own school online student accounts that they log onto to access the curricular materials.
  

The families have access to the written curriculum as well. We have a Meet & Great with the parents at the beginning of the year to inform them of the written curriculum and what their children will be learning in the upcoming academic year. The parents and guardians are sent a letter home and through email every time we start a new module or unit to let them know what their child is currently learning and how they can support their children at home. Pre-pandemic my school would host publishing parties for writing that the parents are invited to so the students can display their writing pieces.  

Having access to our written curriculum digitally last year while teaching during a pandemic really made the planning less stressful. All grade teams have common planning times programmed in our schedules. The lessons that are being taught from the curriculum are synchronized across all classes on the grade level. For example, our reading curriculum is broken down into Modules, so all classes on the grade will be on the same module at the same time. There are times of course when some classes might be ahead or behind others but overall, everyone follows the same pacing calendar and follows the pacing as best as possible so it fits their instruction. Teachers differentiate the lessons in the curriculum to suit their students’ needs. Grade teams also meet once a month to speak about successes with the curriculum and what could be worked on to make better learning experiences for the students.  

In my school, classroom libraries also play a pivotal role in equal access to materials. Each classroom in my school has a class library. This year we were given opportunities to order new books to upgrade our classroom libraries. We were encouraged to order books that deal with diversity, inclusion, SEL (Social Emotional Learning), life skills, S.T.E.M etc. I feel that ordering books that students can see themselves in will give them a reason to want to pick up a book and read and really enjoy what they are reading. 

I am grateful that I work in a school that whenever access is needed to our written curriculum it is at our fingertips. Students having digital access to the written curriculum is so beneficial to them because it gives them opportunities to work with technology which is then in turn getting them college and career ready.  

As discussed in class a number of times, I teach Living Environment and AP Biology at BCA.  When responding to the prompt given about if all members of my school community have access to the written curriculum, I had to think about it in multiple ways.  To start, I am the only living environment and AP biology teacher in my school, so the curriculum I have isn’t really shared with anyone other than my co-teacher (and my administrators if needed, of course).  I know that there are other subjects in my school that have multiple teachers and I know that they discuss and share ideas because that is a big part of our school community.  Throughout the year we have interdepartmental meetings as well as grade team meetings and content team meets.  These meetings involve discussion of content, curriculum, differentiation, and information about IEPs for students.  It’s also a great place to just bounce ideas off of each other.  These meetings have helped me numerous times when I was unsure of how to deliver a specific piece of content or how to properly assess students during a particular assignment.  Our school community values multiple opinions and information from different lenses, as this allows us to better reach the diverse student population we have.

Another thing our school is big on is parent outreach.  We make it a point to reach out to parents with any issues we might having and to discuss student performance.  Parents typically have access to our syllabus but don’t really have access to the curriculum itself.  I don’t believe we withhold that information per say, but personally, I have never been asked by a parent to see my curriculum.

Students are made aware of the information they will be taught.  One of the things my co-teacher and I did last time we were in the classroom was create a bulletin board about living environment.  On it, we had all of the units being covered as well as some additional information about each unit.  We also used this space to add important content specific vocabulary terms and information so that they have access to that part of the curriculum at all times. 

Supplies are always something we have access to.  I feel as if my school is extremely well prepared when it comes to things teachers and students might need to succeed in class.  If there’s specific supplies that I need that I don’t have, my administration is very accommodating about purchasing those materials.  It allows me to have everything I need to properly teach my students and to ensure they succeed in my class.  

Overall, I think my school excels at ensuring that all teachers, students parents and school community members have equal access to the curriculum and materials needed to ensure that curriculum is taught at the highest level possible.  I have never felt stranded or struggling to teach my subject because the support is there and the information needed is there.  It’s a wonderful environment to achieve quality teaching and learning.