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The Curriculum and Staff Development program in the Hueneme School District is based on the premise of "equal access to core curriculum for all students." The sustained professional development program focuses on teaching and learning in the core academic subjects and is aligned with the state curriculum frameworks and district adopted standards. An objective of staff development has been to use teachers including the Peer Assistance Review (PAR) teacher, well-trained framework committee members, and content area specialists within the district to provide inservice. This practice has been highly successful. It not only makes our own staff more knowledgeable, but it enhances peer working relationships and the sharing of effective teaching strategies.
Curriculum and Staff Development is closely aligned with the California State Department approved standards and the seven-year adoption cycle in specific curriculum areas. YEAR ONE focuses on awareness and assessment. A district framework committee is selected which represents each school and every grade level, teachers, administrators, and parents. These committee members are trained in the curricular area, as they are responsible for recommending the content and performance standards and the materials and teaching strategies for adoption to improve student academic achievement and learning. Members become familiar with state documents such as the frameworks, content and performance standards, task force reports, current research, and assessment instruments including the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program. The piloting process for selecting new materials has proven to be successful. For each adoption, all teachers on the adoption committee pilot state-approved materials and practice teaching techniques geared to the new materials. The pilot teachers then complete a formal evaluation. Committee members come to consensus on a set of materials and recommend these materials for districtwide use. The committee recommends materials for adoption, staff development and establishes assessment processes. State-adopted or district-developed curriculum frameworks are provided for teachers at each school site.
Frameworks currently in use include:
· Reading/Language Arts
· Mathematics
· Science
· History/Social Science
· Visual and Performing Arts
· Physical Education
· Gifted and Talented Education
· Family Life/HIV-AIDS Prevention
· English Language Development
YEAR TWO begins a process of implementation at each school site. Schoolwide planning involving all staff sets in motion the use of the new standards-based curriculum and materials. This is an exciting time for both teachers and students. Parents and community are made aware of the new materials. Modifications are made as needed and multiple assessment techniques are used. Throughout this implementation there is a focus on teacher training and student learning. Staff development days, staff meetings and substitutes are utilized for training.
District-level focus on staff development is conducted in the areas of Reading/ Language Arts, Science and Mathematics, New Teacher Inservice, Framework Orientation and Implementation, English Language Development, Sheltered English Immersion, Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English (SDAIE), Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP), Accelerated Reader Program (AR), Successmaker Enterprise (SME), and the use of technology. Summer Institutes are held for district teachers and administrators. Inservice is high-powered and exciting, based on teacher needs. A Staff Development Needs Assessment Survey is administered each year. Curriculum and teaching strategies based on adopted standards are taught and modeled by the presenters and whenever possible, district staff members are used to present the summer institutes.
Funding sources for curriculum and staff development include: Title I, Title II, School/Library Block Grant, Limited English Proficient Program, Migrant Program, Gifted and Talented Education Program, Special Education, and general fund dollars.
The California Legislature has suspended the adoption cycle until 2013. The district adopted instructional materials in Mathematics in June 2009. No further textbook adoptions will take place until 2013, at which time, the district will review materials for Reading/Language Arts.
READING/LANGUAGE ARTS (POSTPONED UNTIL 2013)
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CURRICULUM REVIEW AND IMPLEMENTATION CYCLE
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| YEAR ONE |
AWARENESS/ASSESSMENT/ADOPTION |
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· Organize Reading/Language Arts Committee and train members in content of the new state standards, frameworks, documents, research-based teaching, and related literature.
· Compare district curriculum and teaching strategies with state recommendations to determine strengths and weaknesses of the current curriculum.
· Assess student mastery of content standards and student achievement.
· Recommend content and performance standards aligned with teaching strategies, materials and assessment.
· Pilot new materials/programs and teaching strategies.
· Recommend standards, instructional materials and strategies/Governing Board approves standards and adopts instructional materials.
· Recommend an implementation proposal for materials and teaching strategies.
· Conduct comprehensive, ongoing staff development for classroom teachers and principals on the new Reading/Language Arts content and performance standards, materials, teaching strategies, and assessment.
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| YEAR TWO TO SEVEN |
IMPLEMENT/EVALUATE/MODIFY |
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· Schools utilize their schoolwide planning procedures and school plans to implement the newly adopted standards and materials.
· Schools identify specific resources they will need to implement curriculum including time, materials, staff development, and funding.
· Schools and District implement a monitoring system for assessing the effectiveness of the new curriculum, materials, and teaching strategies on student achievement.
· Schools plan intervention as needed.
· Schools and District evaluate student performance using multiple assessment tools and STAR testing program. |
MATHEMATICS
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CURRICULUM REVIEW AND IMPLEMENTATION CYCLE
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| YEAR ONE |
2008-2009 AWARENESS/ASSESSMENT/ADOPTION |
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· Organize Mathematics Committee.
· Review state framework, state content and performance standards, and related literature.
· Assess student mastery of content standards and student achievement.
· Recommend content and performance standards aligned with teaching strategies, materials and assessment.
· Pilot new materials/programs and teaching strategies.
· Recommend standards, instructional materials and strategies/Governing Board approves standards and adopts instructional materials.
· Recommend an implementation proposal for materials and teaching strategies.
· Conduct comprehensive, ongoing staff development for classroom teachers and principals on the new Mathematics content and performance standards, materials, teaching strategies, and assessment.
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| YEAR TWO TO SEVEN |
2009-2014 IMPLEMENT/EVALUATE/MODIFY |
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· Schools utilize their schoolwide planning procedures, staff development days and school plans to implement the newly adopted standards and materials.
· Schools identify specific resources they will need to implement curriculum including time, materials, staff development, and funding.
· Schools plan and implement a monitoring system for assessing the effectiveness of the new curriculum, materials, and teaching strategies.
· Make modifications as needed.
· Evaluate student performance using multiple assessment tools. |
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HISTORY/SOCIAL SCIENCE
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CURRICULUM REVIEW AND IMPLEMENTATION CYCLE
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| YEAR ONE |
AWARENESS/ASSESSMENT/ADOPTION |
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· Organize History/Social Science Committee.
· Review state framework, content and performance standards, and related literature.
· Determine strengths and weaknesses of the current curriculum and materials.
· Compare district curriculum and teaching strategies with new recommendations.
· Assess student mastery of content standards.
· Pilot new state-approved materials and teaching strategies.
· Recommend new textbooks, update maps, globes and other instructional materials/governing board adopts instructional materials and approves the content and performance standards.
· Recommend an implementation proposal for materials and teaching strategies.
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| YEAR TWO TO SEVEN |
IMPLEMENT/EVALUATE/MODIFY |
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· Conduct comprehensive, ongoing staff development for classroom teachers and principals on the new History/Social Science curriculum.
· Schools utilize their schoolwide planning procedures, student-free staff development days, and school plans to implement the newly adopted curriculum.
· Schools identify specific resources they will need to implement curriculum including time, materials, staff development, and funding.
· Schools plan and implement a monitoring system for assessing the effectiveness of the new curriculum, materials, and teaching strategies.
· Make modifications as needed.
· Evaluate student performance using multiple assessment tools |
SCIENCE
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CURRICULUM REVIEW AND IMPLEMENTATION CYCLE
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| YEAR ONE |
AWARENESS/ASSESSMENT/ADOPTION |
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· Organize Science Committee.
· Review state framework, content and performance standards.
· Determine strengths and weaknesses of the current curriculum.
· Compare district curriculum and teaching strategies with state framework recommendations.
· Assess student mastery of content standards.
· Pilot new materials/programs and teaching strategies.
· Recommend new textbooks and/or other instructional materials/Governing Board adopts instructional materials and approves curriculum.
· Recommend an implementation proposal for materials and teaching strategies.
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| YEAR TWO TO SEVEN |
IMPLEMENT/EVALUATE/MODIFY |
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· Conduct comprehensive, ongoing staff development for classroom teachers and principals on the new Science curriculum and materials.
· Schools utilize their schoolwide planning procedures and school plans to implement the revised curriculum.
· Schools identify specific resources they will need to implement curriculum including time, materials, staff development, and funding.
· Schools plan and implement a monitoring system for assessing the effectiveness of the new curriculum, materials, and teaching strategies.
· Make modifications as needed.
· Evaluate student performance using multiple assessment tools.
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