Curriculum Self-Audit

Curriculum Self-Audit Paper Everyday Mathematics Grade 1 Saint Bonaventure University Josh Gilevski

Curriculum Self-Audit Abstract Sinclairville Elementary School first grade Everyday mathematics was used as the subject for this paper. Curriculum data was gathered and reviewed, and the first grade teachers were interviewed to determine areas of need and for clarification of curricula

practices. In an attempt to retrieve the curriculum policy and practices of Cassadaga Valley Central School District it became apparent that this district is currently developing a Comprehensive Development Educational Plan (CDEP), as well as updating their curriculum maps to match the needs of the common core standards of New York State. Most teachers interviewed were unaware of the district policy regarding curriculum, and many of them agreed that it needs to be updated. The documents used in this audit were used from a district that CVCS is modeling their curriculum guidance after. This district (Lancaster CSD) uses the same curriculum for the grade level under audit. Additional documents used in this audit were gathered in accordance with Cassadaga Valley Central Schools ongoing efforts to develop a CDEP and a comprehensive curriculum plan. Such documents used in this planning include; NYS Common Core Learning Standards for Mathematics, Engage New York; Changes to New York State Standards, Curricula, and Assessments, as well as Lancaster CSD Curriculum maps for grades K-2. It is the direction of this paper to provide a solid base for the development of curriculum in Mathematics to match the standards set by New York State for Cassadaga Valley Central School, using a pre-existing model (Lancaster CSD) similar to the one this district is attempting to create.

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Review of Curriculum Planning Documents The New York State PK-12 Common Core Learning Standards for Mathematics is broken down into sections; 1) Introduction 2) Grade Overview 3) Operations and Algebraic Thinking 4) Number and Operations in Base Ten 5) Measurement and Data 6) Geometry Engage NY; Changes to New York State Standards, Curricula, and Assessments is broken down into the following sections; 1) What changes are coming to mathematics? 2) When will Mathematics tests change? 3) New York State Assessment Transition Plan: Mathematics 4) How will the instructional shifts demanded by the Common Core be reflected in the Math Assessments? 5) Six shifts in Mathematics Assessments 6) How and when will changes occur in curriculum and instruction to align with the new mathematics assessments? 7) New York State Curriculum Transition Plan: Mathematics These documents are paramount in planning any shift or curriculum change. It is vital for districts to use these documents to align their curriculum with state standards

Curriculum Self-Audit as well as understanding what changes are coming in state assessments and how to match their curriculum to these changes.

Review of BOE Policies for Curriculum In review of the Board of Education policies regarding curriculum it is apparent that there is a current policy in place regarding instruction, although this policy was last updated in 2004 well before the changes in the common core were developed or before Student Learning Objectives and CDEPs were mandated. These board documents are vague at best when describing curriculum resources as well as curriculum evaluation. It does not clearly define a process for this, but CVCS is clearly dedicated to developing and adopting new curriculum to match the needs of the state assessments and common core curriculum.

Review of Vertical Articulation Documents Currently the process for the review and vertical articulation is being created. CVCS has developed a committee in which every faction of the faculty is represented and their needs are equally met as far as professional development is concerned. Much of the professional development days are set aside for curriculum mapping and common core alignment. Currently BOCES is training CVCS in the development of Student Learning Objectives and as a result the district has put together a committee to develop their Curriculum Development Education Policies (CDEP), they have based this development largely on Lancaster CSD as they have similar curriculum. The CDEP is deciding what curriculum will be taught, what assessments will be used, what instructional strategies will

Curriculum Self-Audit be employed, and what will motivate the students. All this is done with the common goal

of aligning this to the Common Core state standards, developing a curriculum map prek-12, developing a CDEP, and using this to better student achievement, mainly on state assessments. Everyday Mathematics employs certain practices, concepts, and skills. NYS Common Core Learning Standards have defined these as; Math Practices Make sense of problems and solve them. Reason abstractly and quantitatively Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others. Model with mathematics Use appropriate tools strategically Attend to Precision Look for and make use of structure Look for and express regularity in Repeated reasoning. Algebra skills Represent and solve problems Involving addition and subtraction Understand and apply properties of operations and the

Curriculum Self-Audit relationship subtraction Add and subtract with 20 Work with addition and subtraction equations Concepts Number and Operation in Base Ten Measurement and Data Geometry The teachers are currently meeting to determine how they can link mathematics in with the science curriculum per the common core. between addition and

Review of Curriculum Documents for Alignment to Blooms Cognitive Domains Knowledge is introduced to the students in first grade with the EveryDay math problem establishing things such as routines and beginning them with making connections to the curriculum and daily life. The students then move into comprehension where they will understand numbers, multiple ways of representing numbers, relationships among numbers, and number systems. Students then apply and adapt a variety of appropriate strategies to help solve the problems. Typically this is done with using something that the student can relate to, such as counting things like the number of students in class or using a calendar for the month to teach counting. This is an excellent example used in application. This lesson applies to analysis in that it breaks down the material into parts as seen in Blooms Cognitive Domains. The skills are broken into developing by counting in 2s, 5s, and 20s, comparing numbers less than 16, and writing and counting tallies. The

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evaluation of this lesson is a unit 1 review and assessment, which is oral, written, and white board lesson. Math games and math boxes are also used in assessing this lesson and the students ability to grasp these mathematical concepts.

Objectives/Instructional Strategies Reviewed Everday Mathematics lends itself well to instruction as well as the NYS standards for Mathematics. Each lesson begins with the unit/concept which include objectives and instructional strategies. The next section is essential questions, which include things such as What tool do we use to track days of the week, temperature, days in school, how can you work with a partner successfully, how can you work with a small group successfully, and finally should math tools be treated like toys? This is the great part about this curriculum because it involves many different objectives and instructional strategies within one lesson. The skills portion is divided into exemplars and concrete examples of the skills that will be needed by each student if the teacher wants to move to another objective or skill set. Finally the assessment portion of the map is the data portion of how students success and teacher success for that matter will be measured. Best Practices Reviewed Best practice it would seem is for CVCS District to officially adopt their CDEP and move forward with aligning their Everyday Math Curriculum with the state and core standards. This is easily done through modeling the Lancaster CSD districts curricular maps and these maps ensure that the district and grade levels are all meeting the needs of every student so that they are very successful with the subject they are learning. This

Curriculum Self-Audit

success will ultimately be measured by state assessments and it is of the utmost importance that these curricular maps be constructed, adopted, and applied as soon as possible. Conclusion The goal at CVCS is to improve scores in grades 3-12. This means that the younger levels of students need to have a firm foundation in their curriculum. It is not only important for grades 3-12 to adopt these curricular policies but for the district as a whole if they intend to improve the education of their students. Overall the staff at CVCS seems to be headed in the right direction and they seem to have a firm grasp on what is needed to succeed in doing so. Although it is the opinion at this time of this audit that they are not currently prepared to do so, they seem to moving in the right direction.

Curriculum Self-Audit

References OShea, Mark R. (2005). From Standards to Success. Virginia: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Glatthorn, Allan A. (2000). The Principal as Curriculum Leader. California: Corwin Press, Inc. 2011 Mathematics Grade 1: Introduction Common Core Learning Standards for Mathematics. Retrieved from: http://emsc32.nysed.gov. 2012 Changes to New York State Standards, Curricula, and Assessments Retrieved from: www.engageny.org. 2007 Cassadaga Valley Central School Board Policy.. Implementation Plan and Curriculum Maps Grades K-2. (2012). Retrieved from: http://www.lancasterschools.org