Burlington Literacy Curriculum Audit Underway
Many opportunities for growth have been identified by the ongoing literacy curriculum audit in Burlington Public Schools, an initiative for which Town Meeting this May authorized a spend of nearly a quarter of a million dollars.
Dr. Gail Lovette, contracted by the district to perform a comprehensive review of preK-12th grade literacy instruction, presented her findings to the School Committee last night, and Dr. Lisa Chen outlined how the district will collaborate with Dr. Lovette to revamp instructional practices and ensure successful adoption of a new curriculum.
Lovette visited 58 classrooms when she was here in the spring, spoke with many educators, and received dozens of survey responses representing teachers across grade levels and subject areas. She identified the longevity of teachers in the school system and the depth of institutional knowledge they possess as an asset but found there is inconsistent application of learning interventions and no defined process for adjusting methodology when a student doesn't respond to an intervention. Over and over teachers highlighted two major areas of need: curricular alignment (especially when moving up from elementary to middle and middle to high school) and a unified core curriculum.
Teachers and Dr. Lovette have also noted that "tiering," where students are grouped based on their reading level, has been ineffective at getting students to grade level. Lovette explained that, while at one time the common wisdom was that students need to be taught using materials that match their current reading level, the research doesn't back this up and in fact students need to be reading grade-level texts with scaffolds in place as necessary to help them access the content. Kids who are never allowed to access grade-level texts are in for a shock when they get to MCAS, said Lovette, and in fact when students are taught using grade-level-appropriate materials, all students are lifted, including English Learners.
The plan moving forward is to select a core curriculum and to define and streamline data collection and response practices, eliminating tools that are redundant or not research-proven. A 28-teacher task force has been created to review four options for core curriculum and select two for further investigation, and there will be a parent night on December 11 for parents to look at the two options ahead of final adoption.
Comprehensive professional development will also be offered to teachers, and Dr. Lisa Chen assured the School Committee that the rollout will be realistic and focus on getting teachers on board and excited.
