Curriculum Mapping
Lesson Planning
Professional Development with AtlasLearn
Accreditation
Under the leadership of Shari Castelli, newly appointed Director of Curriculum, Morris County Vocational School District faced the challenge of transitioning their curriculum process and upgrading their existing curriculum as they migrated it to Atlas. Upon stepping into her role, Shari discovered that the existing curriculum was not easily accessible to all teachers and lacked the flexibility to adapt to changing educational needs. She observed, “It wasn’t a living, breathing document that took into consideration how things may change.” The curriculum needed to be more user-friendly and interactive to foster greater teacher involvement and continuous improvement, and the teachers needed to be supported in the implementation of this new process and tool.
Our curriculum is a living framework that inspires teachers to foster the joy of learning. The curriculum is aligned with the district mission, based on New Jersey Student Learning Standards, informed by industry professionals, and crafted by content-area experts. Our teachers utilize curriculum resources to deliver high-quality instruction for diverse learners, resulting in the understanding of interdisciplinary connections, transferable skills, critical thinking, and self-efficacy.
Shari envisioned a more intuitive and collaborative system, one in which her teachers not only referenced Atlas for their unit plans, but actively engaged in the curriculum mapping process, from scope and sequence to daily lesson planning. She hired a team of teachers to assist with the initial transition to Atlas, with the goal of providing the rest of the teachers in the district with a framework to begin mapping their curriculum. However, in order to be successful, teachers across the district would need to be equipped with both technical training on the use of Atlas as well as professional development to support curriculum mapping in alignment with the district’s curricular framework and accreditation standards, all while being flexible enough to be accessed by teachers across an entire school district.
Implementation, Training, and Professional Development
To meet the technical, professional learning, and logistical needs of the district, Shari worked with the Atlas team to enroll her teachers in Curriculum Basics for Teachers in Atlas along with other AtlasLearn courses to support her teachers in their understanding and application of Understanding by Design (UbD), the curricular framework used by the school district.
I created a process where our teachers developing a new curriculum view three Atlas courses: Unpacking Standards into Content and Student Objectives, Unitizing Standards within Courses, and Developing Unit Big Ideas and Enduring Understandings. Once the teachers have taken the courses and earned certificates, they meet with me, and we apply the skills they learned in the three classes to their content standards in preparation for developing or revising the curriculum. Once we have the student learning objectives, units, and [enduring understandings], we work backward to develop assessments and lesson activities and assign interdisciplinary standards. When everything is mapped out, we build the units in Atlas.
– Shari Castelli
“I’ve been using those for a few months, and what a difference it has made!” Shari exclaimed. Since teachers were able to engage with their professional learning at their own pace through AtlasLearn courses, Shari was able to support teachers with coordinating meetings to support their unpacking of state standards into comprehensive unit plans. Included in this process was lesson planning, which the district opted to include in their curricular process in Atlas to help teachers more meaningfully engage in the daily implementation of their units of study.
Results
The results of these efforts were remarkable. Shari observed a significant improvement in the curriculum’s completeness and usability, as well as teacher engagement in the curriculum process.
When asked what advice she has for other districts looking to move their curriculum to Atlas, Shari emphasized the importance of creating a user-friendly system that could be easily managed, even if someone new took over. In addition to the annual archiving and maintenance of institutional knowledge within Atlas of the curriculum and its history, but also in the system of ongoing training and professional development of teachers as they join the district. By creating a system that distributes the knowledge and responsibility of annual and ongoing training through a dedicated team of teacher leaders and utilization of asynchronous and flexible AtlasLearn courses, Morris County Vocational District was able to ensure success even in the face of leadership changes and staff turnover.
The transformation at Morris County Vocational District culminated in a significant cultural shift characterized by excitement and a desire for continuous improvement. Teachers now proactively seek opportunities to revise their curriculum, reflecting the success of the process and the documented curriculum system in Atlas. “There’s a completely new culture – excitement and desire,” Shari noted. The district’s successful QSAC review, with only minor revisions required, highlighted the improved standards alignment and targeted assessments. Shari’s journey demonstrates the power of collaboration, and a commitment to professional development in transforming curriculum. The Morris County Vocational District now stands as a testament to the impact of a well-implemented, interactive curriculum system, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and excellence in education.