Integrated+Curriculum

__The Integrated Curriculum__

In an ideal school, every class a student takes would be thematically and developmentally tied to every other class in obvious and subtle ways. As it is, students travel from one class to another and there may seem to be no rhyme or reason between them--for recognizing common ideas that importantly relate to the life world of the student. And while in an urban district there are students who are highly mobile, an integrated curriculum may still be possible. We have the system we do now in part to allow students to drop in and out of schools at any time of the year and not lose their place. But is this really how it works out? Maybe, there is a way to allow mobility and have a unique, integrated curricular structure.



Following is an example of an [|integrated curriculum] surrounding sustainability in the form of a textbook and the thinking behind it. I'm not necessarily advocating this particular system for New West, but it can be model for what the West community of teachers, learners, and other stakeholders create.



Integrating and merging a new curriculum with existing resources will require creative use of technology, among other resources. An example of my recent work in this area is explained below:

This fall, I will have an article published for the National Science Teachers Association's __The Science Teacher,__ professional journal entitled, "Customizing Curriculum with Digital Resources." In it, I describe a project I have participated in that joined DPS with UCAR in Boulder supported by a National Science Foundation Grant to assist teachers and ultimately students navigate the web and combine existing an curriculum with updated and fresh digital resources. The web portal UCAR created with the assistance of DPS teachers is becoming a model for other states and districts. Here is the [|press release] of our work.

[|More evidence] supports the notion that school turnarounds happen most convincingly not with "innovative" restructuring of the school but with solid, rich curricular offerings taught by motivated, skilled educators.

__The Blended Curriculum__

The 21st Century student will need to not just be able to "use" technology but to know how to use it in productive and appropriate ways. No teacher, not myself, nor any other teacher I know can know everything about what they teach. Nor can we always and reliably reach all of our students with our teaching and learning methods. Sometimes, our students have to lead the way or at least, recognize when they are stuck, ask for help and teachers need to be aware of alternatives. The video below presents an outstanding example of what the 21st Century student can do for themselves in getting the help they need through technology. Teachers can blend this kind of content into their own classroom experiences or, so long as access to technology has been made an equity issue in the school and resolved, assign something like what you see below as homework to be discussed back in class the next day with all students who might benefit. See also, [|Khan Academy].

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