Follow us on
DoDEA Standards Update
What are standards and what impact do they have on students in the classroom?
Curriculum, instruction and assessment are the important elements for obtaining high student achievement. Conducting comprehensive reviews of curricular programs and standards ensures system-wide alignment. Coherent academic standards are critical in guiding school level improvement plans, professional development and program evaluations. Well articulated standards serve as the basis for gathering data about how we assess student and school progress.
Content standards require ongoing review and periodic updates. Recently, curriculum specialists together with classroom teachers reviewed and made recommended updates for all DoDEA core curriculum standards. DoDEA contracted Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL), to provide objective guidance and rate the updated standards on breadth, depth, clarity and specificity.
The updated standards, for the most part, are the same with regard to breadth and depth; but the revisions reflect more clarity and specificity. The updated standards are easier to read, include examples of what the standards should "look like," and give teachers a clearer picture of the grade level and content expectations.
As of July 2009, all core academic content standards (i.e., Science, Mathematics, Social Studies, and English Language Arts) received a favorable rating from McREL.
The updated standards are published on the DoDEA website, with the exception of the high school mathematics standards, which are expected to be approved by McREL during the school year.
What role will standards play in the classroom?
As a school system, DoDEA has spent several years training teachers on how to use standards so that all our teachers have the same expectations for rigor and excellence.
Standards are the foundation of sound teaching and sustainable student achievement. They provide the basis for gathering data, assessing student progress, and are a road map towards continuous improvement.
DoDEA is helping teachers:
- Incorporate standards into instructional planning for the school year. Lessons, activities and projects will be designed and selected as they relate to specific concepts or skills identified by the DoDEA content standards.
- Develop standards-based lessons that require students to think critically and apply their knowledge. Inquiry and problem solving will be a part of daily lessons presented in the classroom.
- Connect standards to other content area concepts, procedures and understandings as well as to the world.
- Promote greater classroom discourse by expanding the use of questioning techniques and requiring students to explain their thinking both orally and in writing. Giving students ample time and opportunity to question, examine, conjecture, and experiment during lessons will improve their ability to reason.
Working collaboratively with educators and administrators to implement standards-based instruction will help DoDEA enhance instructional practices and increase student performance and achievement.
