The Board of Trustees desires to provide a research-based, sequential curriculum which promotes high levels of student achievement and emphasizes the development of basic skills, problem solving, and decision making. Upon recommendation of the Superintendent or designee, the Board shall adopt a written district curriculum which describes, for each subject area and grade level, the content objectives which are to be taught in all district schools.
The district's curriculum shall be aligned with the district's vision and goals for student learning, Board policies, academic content standards, state curriculum frameworks, state and district assessments, graduation requirements, school and district improvement plans, and, when necessary, related legal requirements.
The Superintendent or designee shall establish a process for curriculum development, selection, and/or adaptation which utilizes the professional expertise of teachers, principals, and district administrators representing various grade levels, disciplines, special programs, and categories of students as appropriate.
The selection and evaluation of instructional materials shall be coordinated with the curriculum development and evaluation process.
The Superintendent or designee shall present information about the resources that would be necessary to successfully implement the curriculum and describe any modifications or supplementary services that would be needed to make the curriculum accessible to all students.
The Board shall establish a review cycle for regularly evaluating the district's curriculum in order to ensure continued alignment with state and district goals for student achievement. At a minimum, these reviews shall be conducted whenever the State Board of Trustees adopts new or revised content standards or the curriculum framework for a particular subject or when new law requires a change or addition to the curriculum.
In addition, the Board may require a review of the curriculum in one or more subject areas as needed in response to student assessment results; feedback from teachers, administrators, or parent/guardians; new research on program effectiveness; or changing student needs.
Legal Reference:
EDUCATION CODE
221.5 Equal opportunity
35160 Authority of governing boards
35160.1 Broad authority of school districts
51050-51057 Enforcement of courses of study
51200-51263 Required courses of study
51500-51540 Prohibited instruction
51720-51879.9 Authorized classes and courses of instruction
60000-60424 Instructional materials
GOVERNMENT CODE
3543.2 Scope of representation
CODE OF REGULATIONS, TITLE 5
4000-4091 School improvement programs
4400-4426 Improvement of elementary and secondary education
Management Resources:
CSBA PUBLICATIONS
Maximizing School Board Leadership: Curriculum, 1996
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PUBLICATIONS
Content Standards for California Public Schools: Kindergarten Through Grade 12
Curriculum Frameworks for California Public Schools: Kindergarten Through Grade 12
WEB SITES
CSBA: http://www.csba.org
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development: http://www.ascd.org
Association of California School Administrators: http://www.acsa.org
California Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development: http://www.cascd.org
California Department of Education, Curriculum and Instruction: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci
Policy VISTA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
adopted: April 21, 2011 Vista, California