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Last modified: November 25, 2024

Policy 4020 P1: Curriculum Development and Adoption of Instructional Materials

The curriculum of a district will be examined on a regular basis according to the cyclical 8 review established by the office of Teaching and Learning. This review of district-wide 9 curriculum materials will run per the established review cycle.

The adoption of curriculum for other content areas will be determined at the school level under the direction of the building principal.

District Curriculum Committees: Process for District-Wide Materials Adoption

The district curriculum committees guide curriculum and instruction related to their content. These teacher-directed committees establish and monitor such procedures as may be necessary for the selecting, adopting and discarding of instructional materials purchased and implemented by the district. The committees will act upon requests for text approval and removal and will evaluate and act upon citizens’ requests for reconsideration of instructional materials. The function of the committees is to ensure that materials are selected in conformance to stated criteria and related state laws. Regular committee meetings will be held monthly. In addition to the foundation of teachers representing different grade levels and schools in the district, a few building and district administrators will also serve on a district curriculum committee. Meetings are open to the public but only committee members can participate in the discussion and related decision-making

During those years when materials adoption is under consideration, monthly meeting agendas will be directed to the three-phase process of materials’ evaluation and selection.

Phase 1: Needs Assessment

In Phase 1 of the Curriculum Review Cycle, the committee works to assess the current instructional program of the identified subject area and grade range. The final product of the committee is a document that summarizes: 

  1. Common teacher use of the curriculum notebooks, specifically:

    • Essentials

    • Pacing Guide

    • Assessments

    • Curriculum

  2. Review of current common curriculum/materials, specifically:

    • Alignment with state standards and essentials

    • Alignment with effective, evidence-based teaching practices

    • Availability for coming years

    • Age/relevancy

    • Presence/absence on the state RIMS list

  3. Student performance on state standards

Upon the completion of the evaluation, the committee goes to Phase 2, Curriculum/Materials Review.

Phase 2: Curriculum/Materials Review

In Phase 2 of the Curriculum Review Cycle, the committee officially becomes an Instructional Materials Committee. As such, the committee expands by inviting members of the community (at least five parents/university/citizens will be invited as voting members) and meeting times and locations are published on the district’s website. The committee works to address the needs identified in Phase 1, needs assessment. The committee goes through the following process in Phase 2:

  1. Review of the Phase 1 summary document.
  2. Determination of whether new and/or supplemental curriculum/materials are needed, considering the findings of the needs assessment. If the determination is no, the committee’s work moves out of Phase 2 and into Phase 3. If the answer is yes, the committee proceeds to:
    • Create a curriculum program evaluation rubric/tool which includes:
      • Alignment with state standards
      • Alignment with district goals (included Essentials)
      • Alignment with evidence-based teaching practices
      • Technological compatibility with district hardware and software
      • Criteria from policy:
        • Enrich and support the curriculum, taking into consideration the varied instructional needs, abilities, interests, and maturity levels of the students served
        • Stimulate student growth in conceptual thinking, depth of knowledge, factual accuracy, physical fitness and literary and ethical standards.
        • Provide sufficient variety so as to present opposing views of controversial issues in order that students may develop the skills of critical analysis and informed decision making
        • Contribute to the development of an understanding of the ethnic, cultural, and occupational diversity of American life.
        • Present objectively the concerns of and build upon the contributions, current and historical, of both sexes, and members of religious, ethnic, and cultural groups.
        • Provide models which may be used as a vehicle for the development of self-respect and cultural awareness, based on respect for the worth, dignity, and personal values of individuals.
        • Have been vetted for bias pertaining to race, creed, color, national origin, religion, age, sex, and disability.
    • Professional development, including in-person trainings, digital, and ongoing support.
    • Assessment package, including district interim assessments
    • Other criteria, as determined by the committee
    • Total expense (utilizing state contracts with digital [if available] access for 5+ years.
  3. Submit an RFP, based on the rubric components, for instructional materials. c. Evaluate curricular programs from qualified RFP submissions:
    • Utilize the committee-created rubric
    • Solicit feedback from teachers and the community (e.g. Open House, surveys)
    • Consider the costs and available funds
    • Determine the committee’s first and second choices (by vote/consensus)
    • Submit recommendation(s) to the Assistant Superintendent of Teaching & Learning The Director(s) of Elementary and Secondary Teaching and
    • Learning then reviews the committee’s proposal. Upon the Directors’ approval, the recommendation is taken to the Superintendent and Board of Education for approval. Upon approval by the Superintendent and Board, the Teaching & Learning office initiates the purchase of the product and the start of Phase 3, Professional Development and Implementation.

Phase 3: Professional Development and Implementation

In Phase 3 of the Curriculum Review Cycle, upon board approval of curriculum purchases, the committee works to plan and implement professional learning for teachers, addressing the needs identified in Phases 1 and 2, specifically, training on new state standards and new curricular materials. Additionally, the committee will align curricular materials to the related Curriculum Notebook(s). The committee’s plan addresses:

  1. Resources needed

    • Identification and acquisition of needed resources: people, time, space, materials, and funds

    • Consideration of the need to minimize teachers’ time outside the classroom

    • Utilization of summer for training time

    • Utilization of school PLC/Department-Grade Meetings for professional collaboration

    • Utilization of district PD Days for professional learning new state standards (when applicable)

  2. New curricular materials (when applicable)

    • Publisher/program-provided support

      • Initial trainings (in-person/digital)

      • Ongoing trainings (in-person/digital)

      • Online professional learning tools

      • Ongoing, individualized support (coaching, consulting, etc.)

    • District-provided support

      • Trainings (courses and classes)

      • Coaching/consultation

  3. Curriculum Notebooks

    • Adjustments needed, based on new standards and curriculum

    • Sharing/training on the changes in the curriculum notebooks

    • Learning Management System (LMS) integration of new curriculum and updated curriculum notebooks

  4. Long-term planning and support

    • Identify requisite ongoing resources, including: technology support, coaching support, curriculum specialist support, and assessment support

Citizens Participation in the Review of Instructional Materials

Should a community member wish to make a formal protest regarding specific material used in the school system, they must use the form for requesting reconsideration of instructional materials. These forms are available in Policy 4022 Evaluation and Reconsideration of School Curriculum and Instructional Materials.

Removal of Materials from the Approved for Use List

At the time of adoption by the board of education, basic instructional materials will be added to the “Approved for Use” list.

After the newly adopted basic materials have been purchased for the schools in the district, and thus superseding those materials which had been previously adopted, the former district adoptions will be removed from the “Approved for Use” list.

Those materials that have been removed from the “Approved for Use” list should be regarded as surplus property and disposed of by the appropriate administrator using the approved vendor in accordance with district and state procedures.

Planning for Instruction

To ensure planning and continuity of instruction, teachers will develop written lesson plans for daily instruction. Lesson plans must include but are not limited to a reference to district curriculum for clear instructional targets, provide for appropriate assessment of student learning and make provisions for differentiated instructional strategies. Lesson plans must be readily available.

Curriculum Alignment

Provo City School District’s curriculum will be aligned with the state’s required learning standards. Each teacher in the Provo City School District will employ the aligned curriculum and clearly identified district learning essentials/competencies in providing students with the opportunity to acquire the knowledge, skills and assessment strategies necessary to meet or exceed the state proficiency cut scores, district graduation requirements and entrance requirements for post-secondary education and/or occupational opportunities.

Course Disclosure Document

 All students in grades 7 through 12 in the Provo City School District will be provided with a disclosure document for each course that outlines the curriculum for the course pursuant to state and district policy. The disclosure document will describe, through clearly identified district learning essentials/competencies, the extent to which the curriculum will provide students with the knowledge, skills and assessment strategies that will enable them to meet or exceed the state’s proficiency cut scores, district graduation requirements and entrance requirements for post-secondary education and/or occupational opportunities. Additionally, each disclosure document will include the manner in which students will be assessed and graded, along with the classroom management requirements for the class.

Teachers will develop reading lists and classroom libraries so that students have a wide variety of reading materials suggested or available to them that support student mastery of learning essentials and critical content. Teachers will follow the guidelines outlined in Policy 4022, and include these reading lists in their disclosure document to enable parents and the principal to review them. If a parent believes that a book on the reading list is objectionable, the teacher will provide an alternate book for the student to read as a replacement. Parents will sign a statement acknowledging receipt of a class disclosure document.

Surplus Textbooks and Instructional Materials

When it has been determined that textbooks and instructional materials have become obsolete and are in need of disposal from a district site, the obsolete reading material must first be made available to the district approved vendor for processing through that system in accordance with district and state requirements.

Instructional materials may be declared surplus if:

  •  The material has been superseded by a new edition
  • The copyright date is old enough to indicate that the material is dated in content, use and accuracy,
  • The physical condition precludes further use or,
  • The use of the material is limited because of a program change.

Responsibility

It is the responsibility of the Director(s) of Teaching and Learning to provide, on an annual basis and in the spring of each school year, instructions to sites for the annual disposal of all surplus textbooks and library books and instructional materials. The instructions will include directions for packing and reporting materials to be declared surplus through the district vendor.

It is the responsibility of the Financial Administrator to process the finances associated with the disposal of all surplus textbooks, library books and instructional materials in accordance with district and state guidelines.

If the surplus textbooks and library books and instructional materials are determined to have no value or if no purchaser is found, the reading materials may be recycled through the approved district vendor.

Legal References

Related Policy & Procedures

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